A man was rescued in the Niagara River off Unity Island in Buffalo Tuesday morning, the latest in a series of water rescues and fatalities in the river.

Rescue officials say the water there moves at about 10 knots, or 12 miles per hour. 

The man who went into the water Tuesday didn’t speak English, so the warning signs along the park saying this area if off limits and unsafe for swimming went unheeded.

“People are aware of what’s going on here, but what we need people to know is that they cannot go into this water, especially the Niagara River,” said Battalion Chief Matt Hoare.

There are several signs in the park warning of the river’s dangers, but they’re all in English. The man reportedly went into the water to cool off on a hot day.   

Just before 10 a.m. crews rushed to the scene to save a man who was in the quick moving water.

 

 

Greg Scheeler witnessed the event.

“I was riding my bike and I just heard noises,” he said. “Usually you just hear the birds making noises. Didn't think it was a person in the water with all the problems we've been having here."

He jumped into action.

 “We tried to get a life jacket out to him, but that guy from Canada, he all of a sudden comes flying out of the water,” Scheeler said. “Then I realized it was a guy. His head was bobbing up and down in the water. We don't know how he made it that far."  

That 'guy from a Canada' was on a boat watching below the Peace Bridge as construction is underway.

Now a warning from authorities this is no place to swim, nearly a year after Officer Craig Lehner’s death in the same area.

 “Ultimately the Niagara River is no joke and we shouldn't be in it," Hoare said. “Maybe that we need some better signage. That is something we can look at, but right now, we are just happy he's safe."

The man is OK and was taken to ECMC where he was undergoing evaluation.