Numerous witnesses say they saw a man on top of a bluff about 150 feet above the American River tumble down in a landslide that is estimated to be 20 to 30 feet wide and up to 6 feet deep upstream of the Fair Oaks Bridge around 7:30 p.m Saturday near Folsom.
Rescue crews from Sacramento Metro Fire and the Sacramento Fire Department responded with a helicopter, boats and Drowning Accident Response Team (DART).
A team of rescuers were at the bottom of the bluff digging, hoping to find the man who was wearing black shorts and no shirt, according to the witnesses who saw the man.
Captain Bryan Thomson, Sacramento Metro Fire, Public Information Officer, explained that this evening they had a fire boat in the river from another incident and some bystanders told the crew they saw someone fall off the bluff.
“They quickly went down the river and began to look around,” Thomson said. “There was a pile and a cloud of dust. They couldn’t find anybody.”
When the crew came back to the boat ramp six witnesses said “there was a white adult male, black shorts, no shirt, that fell off the bluffs into the water and didn’t resurface.”
“We have 60 firefighters and rescuers, a helicopter was assigned out here,” Thomson explained.
A hasty search was done with the boats looking in the water and the banks looking for anybody.
“A rescue company is on the pile at the bottom of the bluff digging,” Thomson said. “A rescue dog came out to the pile and show interested in a general area, so they’re digging that area now to see if anyone is under the pile.”
As of 12:32am no discovery. The search will resume with helicopter and sonar operations with DART dive team around 7am.
