Rescue teams recover body of man who jumped from Gaston Bridge
Area emergency personnel recovered the body of Nathaniel Long Saturday evening in Gaston, N.C.
In what has been ruled a suicide, 86-year-old Long of Roanoke Rapids, N.C. jumped to his death from the Gaston Bridge on Highway 48. Northampton County Sheriff Jack Smith said a witness saw Long put his leg over the bridge rail and jump toward the rocky ground and Roanoke River below. Smith said no foul play was suspected.
Emergency personnel from both Northampton and Halifax counties responded to the incident and the Northampton County Sheriff’s Department led the investigation.
According to a Gaston Fire-Rescue-EMS news release, a pair of Gaston Fire-Rescue-EMS swift water rescue teams searched the water and located the body within five minutes of their deployment, finding Long downstream of the bridge.
Long was declared dead at the scene.
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