Man Rescued By Joliet Fire Department After Being Trapped In The Des Plaines River

At 7:53pm on Saturday, August 19th, the Joliet Fire Department responded to the Des Plaines River for report of a person trapped in the river, splashing around near a tree line down by the Railroad bridge.

The first units arrived within three minutes of the call and found one victim in the water, just south of the Jefferson Street bridge. Firefighters donned immersion suits and entered the river to rescue the victim. Once secured on a rescue board, the victim, a 33 year old male, was picked up by the JFD response boat and brought to shore where he was treated and transported to the hospital. One of the first arriving Joliet Police officers to the scene, while trying to assist the victim, lost his footing and fell into the water. He was able to secure himself against the river wall until the rescue was complete and then was assisted out of the water with no apparent injuries.

Fire crews from Stations 1, 5 and 6, along with Joliet Police were on the scene for about one hour.