A man jumped from the Interstate 35W bridge into the Mississippi River just before 6 p.m. Tuesday after pulling his car over to the side of the road, according to police.
A witness reported the incident to the Minneapolis Police Department at 5:53 p.m., Minneapolis police Sgt. Steve McCarty said. Responders searched for the man late into the night on Tuesday, but he has not been located.
As of about 2 p.m. Wednesday, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office was still searching for him, said spokeswoman Lisa Kiava.
Minnesota State Patrol sent out a helicopter to search the area around 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, hovering up and down the Mississippi River before it became too dark to continue. Soon after, a Hennepin County Sheriff’s boat launched.
Two cars that didn’t appear to belong to first responders were parked on the far right lane of the 35W bridge Tuesday night. It’s uncertain whether one of the cars belonged to the man who jumped.
The far right lane of 35W southbound was closed for a few hours Tuesday, but the rest of the bridge remained open.
The incident is the second bridge-jump near the University of Minnesota in the past week, according to a release from the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office.
The body of a 60-year-old man was discovered in the Mississippi River last Friday — three days after he jumped off the Franklin Avenue Bridge.
-Claire Bramel contributed to this report.