Five people die in attempt to save struggling swimmer in Ohio river

Rescue crews find two women, pronounced dead at hospital, and the bodies of three men after motorist calls 911

Five people have died in a river in Ohio after several of them went into the water to help another person who was struggling to swim, authorities said Monday.

A motorist called 911 after spotting a frightened child who had been with the group and was running on a nearby road, Delaware county sheriff Jeffrey Balzer said at a news conference on Monday.

Two children under age 10 have been placed in the care of family services, the sheriff said, including the child who ran for help.

The group had gathered on Sunday along the Scioto River in the Columbus suburb of Powell when one of them went into the river to go swimming.

“And that’s when the tragedy started to occur,” Balzer said, as the others who jumped in to help also began struggling.

Rescue crews searching the water on Sunday found two women, who were pronounced dead at a hospital, Balzer said. The bodies of three men were found in the river on Monday, said Tracy Whited, a spokesperson for the Delaware county sheriff’s department.

The tragedy occurred two days after five members of a family were killed in southern Utah after a flash flood swept through canyons during a hiking trip.