A high-stakes rescue unfolded late Wednesday night as Jacksonville patrol officers and a SWAT team saved a woman from a potential 141-foot plunge into the St. Johns River from the Hart Bridge. According to a social media post by the Jax Sheriff’s Office, the desperate scene was met with swift action and a delicate balance of compassion and technical skill.
๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐ฉ: ๐๐๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐ฅ, ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ข๐๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฌ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ง ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ ๐โWe care. Iโm telling you, we care,โ said an officer as a woman dangled 141 feet above the river.Late Wednesday night, officers found a distraughtโฆ pic.twitter.com/14Rv3uNLs8
โ Jax Sheriff’s Office (@JSOPIO) June 23, 2025
The incident began when officers encountered a distressed woman who had climbed over the bridge’s railing. With traffic halted and the woman’s life literally hanging in the balance, officers engaged in a careful dialogue, all while backup from the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue and the JSO Marine Unit was called in. A member of the SWAT team, proficient in high-angle rescues, subsequently prepared a rope and harness system to secure the woman.
Throughout the two-and-a-half-hour operation, law enforcement personnel showed unremitting dedication to the womanโs safety. “We care. Iโm telling you, we care,” said an officer, as per the JSO’s post on X. This sentiment became the cornerstone of the painstaking efforts that finally led to the woman agreeing to wear the harness and being carefully pulled to safety above the river…