By: Rob Moore
(Helen)- Rescue crews spent about 45 minutes retrieving an injured man who fell into the Chattahoochee River, behind Nora Mill near Helen Wednesday morning. Helen Fire Chief Lee Poteat said at the scene the man’s injuries were not life-threatening. The injured man’s name was not given. “We were dispatched to a man that fell over the deck out here at Nora Mill into the water,” Poteat said,
“We got here and it was an isolated injury, not critical, so instead of getting anybody else hurt we decided to use the ladder truck and a rope rigging system to get him over the edge using a Stokes basket,” Poteat said.
According to Poteat said he believes the man was pulling up old decking boards to replace them. The incident occurred around 10:30 this morning and Poteat said the rescue operation took about 45 minutes. Because of the placement of the ladder truck, Georgia Highway 75 had to be shut down to traffic in both directions.
In addition to Helen Fire Department, personnel from White County Station 3 responded, along with White County Emergency Medical Services.