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Police say ‘panic attack’ caused man to fall into Chicago River

Photo by Steven Dahlman

(Above) West side of State Street Bridge (2012 photo).

September 28, 2015 – A man rescued last Thursday after he fell from the State Street Bridge had suffered a sudden onset of anxiety while leaning over the railing, according to Chicago Police Department.

The unidentified young man was leaning over the guard rail at about 2:23 p.m. when police say he had a panic attack, lost his balance, and fell into the Chicago River.

As the man struggled to stay afloat, personnel on board a nearby tour boat called police on ship-to-shore radio.

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Multiple emergency vehicles responded, including a Scuba dive team and two rescue helicopters. By 2:27 p.m., Marine Unit 7 had the man pulled from the river and on Wacker Drive west of the bridge. Police say he “suffered a bit of shock and hypothermia” and was treated at a nearby hospital.

A 19-year-old man was not so lucky on Saturday after falling into the Chicago River near North Orleans Street at 4 a.m. Ali Ahsan, who lived north of the Loop on North Kedzie Avenue, was unresponsive when taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital and was pronounced dead at 5:17 a.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.

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