Body Recovered from Ohio River Is Believed to Be Friday Bridge Jumper
WHEELING -- Wheeling first responders on Monday recovered the body of a man who is believed to have jumped off the Wheeling Suspension Bridge on Friday.
Around 10 a.m., members of the Wheeling Fire Department continued the search for the man who'd jumped, which had discontinued late Friday due to weather. The man was found near Wheeling Creek, just behind the Orrick building.
The man's next-of-kin were notified Monday afternoon. His remains were sent to the state medical examiner's office, according to police spokesman Philip Stahl. Police are working with the office to determine a cause and manner of death.
Around 9 p.m. Friday, an eyewitness said they saw the man -- whose identity was not made public -- leap from the bridge in the middle of a thunderstorm. Police were informed, Stahl said, by someone who was with the man at the time. On Saturday and Sunday, rescuers were in "recovery mode," as the search for the man had turned into a recovery mission to retrieve his body.