Body was recovered around two hours later from the river
A tragic event unfolded on Thursday afternoon when a 25-year-old man jumped from the lower deck of the iconic D. Luís I Bridge between Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia into the Douro River and was later found dead.
According to Jornal de Notícias, the riverside area was bustling with people when the accident occurred at around 3pm.
Rescue efforts involved boats, a jet ski, and divers who eventually retrieved the man’s body at around 5pm.
JN reports that maritime police had already secured the victim’s clothes and belongings. Despite strong currents making the search challenging, the body was located and transported by boat to maritime police facilities.
A source from Gaia’s Sapadores firefighters did not reveal the victim’s identity, confirming only that he was “not from Porto or Gaia”.
The newspaper also says that the fatal jump was filmed by a tourist from Galicia, Spain. The riverside area near the search operation was cordoned off to facilitate the rescue efforts, causing “significant disruption”, JN adds.
Jumping from the bridge into the river is a common practice during this time of year, with many doing so simply for fun or to go diving for coins which are tossed into the river by tourists.
