Portsmouth, Va. — A Coast Guard boat crew rescued a man who reportedly jumped from the James River Bridge near Newport News Monday morning.
Newport News Police Department personnel notified Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads watchstanders of an abandoned vehicle on the James River Bridge and a possible bridge jumper in the water.
Crews aboard a 25-foot Response Boat from Coast Guard Station Portsmouth and an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C., launched to participate in the search alongside Newport News Fire Rescue and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission.
The Jayhawk crew spotted a man in the water a mile north of the Monitor-Merrimac Bridge-Tunnel at approximately 8 a.m. and helped vector in the rescue boats.
The Coast Guard’s boat crew arrived on scene and pulled the man from the water who was reportedly showing signs of hypothermia.
“This was a successfully coordinated search and rescue effort between the Coast Guard, Newport News Fire Rescue and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission,’ said Senior Chief Petty Officer Steven Gilmour, the officer-in-charge of Station Portsmouth. “We take every case seriously and always hope for the best result. We are very fortunate that this case ended with a positive outcome.”
The man was taken to the Leeward Marina and was met by emergency medical services personnel who took the man to Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News.
