SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A Marion County, Ore., sheriff’s deputy is being praised for grabbing a suicidal 31-year-old Salem man and refusing to let go, even when the two of them tumbled into the chilly Santiam River.
Alerted by the man’s family, deputies went looking for the man Saturday night. Sgt. Don Sweet spotted the man’s car near a bridge over the river, then saw the man on the river’s edge.
Deputy Jason Bernards tried to sneak up on the man, who began to run. Bernards tackled him and they tumbled into the 38-degree water.
Sheriff’s spokesman Don Thomson says had Bernards let go, the man likely would have been swept into deeper water to his death. Deputy Brian Dunkin managed to pull the two to safety.
