UPDATE: Dive Units Locate Body Of Tacoma Fisherman On Green River

UPDATE:

Dive units located the body of the 35-year-old Tacoma man on the Green River on Thursday, Oct. 13 at about 4 p.m. The man had been fishing wish a friend and was crossing the river when he fell and was swept downriver with the current.

ORIGINAL:

The Renton Dive Unit and Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit are working a recovery operation today along the Green River following a fruitless search last night for a fisherman who lost his footling and got swept away in the river's current.

The incident happened just before 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 12 near the 11200 block of SE Auburn-Black Diamond Road off Highway 18 in Auburn.

The victim is identified as a 35-year-old Tacoma man who was fishing with a friend, according to a press release from the King County Sheriff's Office.

The man was wading across the river with a friend in an area where the water was nearly waist-deep when he lost his footing. The fisherman's hip-waders began to fill with water as he was swept away with the current. One person reportedly jumped in to save the man, while others reached out with their fishing poles, according to the Sheriff's Office press release.

The man was last seen as he floated into a log jam down river, and is presumed drowned. 

King County Guardian One also responded. The helicopter is equipped with a spotlight and thermal imaging technology that could be used to aid in the search. District 44 and the King County Sheriff's Office also responded.

Dive teams searched until just after 9 p.m. Wednesday, said a Renton Fire and Emergency Services Official. The search will continue today during daylight hours.



Currently, officials are unable to say if the fisherman was wearing a life vest.