SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA CO. (WOLF) — A man who was rescued from the Lackawanna River in Scranton on Thursday has died, city officials confirmed.
Emergency crews were dispatched just before noon after reports of a person in the water near Mulberry Street. According to Scranton Fire Chief John Judge, the man was seen in the river and was eventually pulled from the water near the University of Scranton softball field.
Once firefighters were able to pull the man ashore, life-saving measures began immediately. Judge said he hoped they’d be able to revive him after a cold water rescue, but they were unable to revive him.
The 57-year-old victim was transported to Geisinger Community Medical Center in critical condition. Authorities said he died a short time later.
Scranton Police Chief Tom Carroll credited Officer Joe Flesher with making a bold effort to save the man. Carroll said Flesher entered the fast-moving, icy water in an attempt to reach the victim.
“Officer Flesher’s selfless actions placed his own life in jeopardy,” Carroll told FOX56. “He’s lucky he wasn’t a casualty himself.”
Flesher was recently honored for another rescue in which he saved a Department of Public Works employee who had become trapped between a vehicle and a fence.
In a statement released late Thursday afternoon, County Coroner Tim Towland said, “The Lackawanna County Coroner and SPD are investigating the death of a 57-year-old Scranton man who was discovered in the Lackawanna River, under the Mulberry St bridge complex, shortly before noon. He was ultimately pulled from the water by first responders and transported by EMS to GCMC ED, where he was declared dead after resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful.”
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The circumstances surrounding how he ended up in the river remain under investigation.