Missing college student from Minnesota feared dead in Chippewa River
Rescue crews in Eau Claire continue to search for a missing student who reportedly fell from a University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire footbridge into the Chippewa River late Friday night, the Leader Telegram reports.
Police say David Patrick Rodgers, 20, of Northfield, Minn., is missing from his on-campus dorm, according to the Pioneer Press. He also matches witness descriptions of the man falling into the river.
"We had firefighters in one of our rescue boats, and with the river at the stage that it is, they're having to dodge logs and debris and ice chunks as they were coming down the river," Battalion Chief Bryon Bensen told WQOW. "There's an added element of risk for us as rescuers when the river is at this level."
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Bensen confirmed the operation is no longer considered a rescue mission, but a recovery effort.
Rodgers is described as white, 5-foot-10 and 168 pounds, with brown eyes, according to a news release. He was last seen wearing khaki pants and a white T-shirt with the words "No Obama" on the front.
Anyone with information is asked to call the UW-Eau Claire Police Department at 715-836-2222.
