FORT SMITH — A Fort Smith man died Thursday evening after jumping from the Garrison Avenue bridge over the Arkansas River, according to the Sequoyah County, Okla., sheriff’s office.
Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart identified the man Friday as Derrick Griffin, 44. He said Griffin jumped 80 feet into the river as a Fort Smith police officer approached him about 6:30 p.m. A motorist had notified the police that the man was sitting on the bridge railing.
Fort Smith police, Sebastian County sheriff’s deputies and the Fort Smith Fire Department responded to the call, in addition to the Sequoyah County sheriff’s office. The Oklahoma officials are handling the investigation because the man was on the Oklahoma side of the river, which forms part of the boundary between Arkansas and Oklahoma.
A Fort Smith Fire Department rescue boat located Griffin floating face down in the river and pulled him out of the water. Firefighters performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on Griffin, who was in critical condition, according to Lockhart.
Griffin was taken to Sparks Regional Medical Center, where he died later Thursday. His body has been sent to the Oklahoma medical examiner’s office for autopsy, Lockhart said.