Emergency crews used a rope system to rescue a young man who suffered a traumatic head injury after jumping from a rope swing and landing on some rocks in the Washougal River on Monday evening.
Crews from East County Fire & Rescue were called to the 40000 block of Northeast Washougal River Road at about 5:15 p.m. for what was first reported as an unknown problem.
“We weren’t sure what we were going to,” Capt. Michael Carnes said. “There were some cellphone issues.”
Emergency responders eventually learned that they were heading to a water rescue and called in reinforcements.
When they arrived, they learned that a 19-year-old man had jumped off of a rope swing and landed head first in the shallow part of the river, hitting his head on some rocks, Carnes said.
Witnesses said that the man went under and that people nearby dove in after him, pulling him out of the water and onto the bank, Carnes said. Witnesses told medics that they performed CPR on the man and got him breathing again prior to emergency personnel arriving, he said.
While medics from East County Fire & Rescue and the Camas-Washougal Fire Department went down the steep slope and assisted the young man, a heavy rescue vehicle from Vancouver Fire Department and a technical rescue vehicle from Clark County Fire District 6 responded.
Carnes described the man as conscious and breathing but not alert.
Medics treated the man and packaged him onto a backboard and then into a sled. Crews used a rope system to pull him up to the road. He was then transported to an area hospital. His condition as not available.
