Binghamton River Rescue Saves Woman

"She's lucky to be alive."  Those words come directly from officials in the City of Binghamton Fire Department following the rescue of a woman from the flood-swollen Susquehanna River at the Rock Bottom Dam.

Authorities say the woman had been soaking her feet in the water at around 5:30 p.m. July 2 when she fell in and was quickly swept away. She was sucked under the boil below the dam three times before washing back to the riverbank where she clung to a retaining wall.

Some city crews had been on the opposite shore at the time, checking the river levels, when they saw the woman go into the water and summoned help.

Around 20 rescuers from the city police and fire departments participated in the dangerous rescue.

The Rock Bottom Dam has a deadly history. That's where three Binghamton firefighters died in 1975 in an attempted river rescue when they were sucked into the vortex under the dam.

Authorities are advising people to stay away from the rivers and even smaller tributaries that are currently running very high and fast due to the recent rains.

The woman was charged under a city ordinance for bathing in the river.