First responders say they have been unable to find a man who reportedly fell into the swollen Willimantic River overnight.
Willimantic Police say that about 3:44 a.m. on Saturday, they and the Willimantic Fire Department responded to 75 Bridge Street. Preliminary investigation indicated that a 29-year-old Willimantic resident accidentally fell into the river, according to a witness who was with him at the time.
The area of the river the man fell in was deep with an extremely fast-moving current, due to rains and snow-melt over the Christmas holiday. Police say they deployed their drone soon after arrival. Several passes of the river for an approximate 1.5-mile stretch were conducted throughout the morning. Numerous firefighters and officers also were deployed on both sides of the river for the same 1.5-mile stretch, but no sign of the man was found.
Police said "Our efforts have been hampered by the amount of rainfall in the past 24hrs in conjunction with the snow melting and the now freezing temps. Some of the trails on the side of the river that were once walkable are now flooded over. We will continue our efforts to locate the male."
This is a developing story; we'll bring you more information as it becomes available.
