Woman grabs branch, floats with 5 others as they await rescue in Chattahoochee

Six people were safely rescued from the Chattahoochee River on Saturday afternoon near Vinings, according to police.

Just before 4 p.m., a person who works at a nearby school called 911 to report a group of swimmers in distress along Cochise Drive north of Paces Ferry Road, police said in a news release. The caller directed firefighters to the location of the victims on the river, which was behind a home.

A woman was holding onto a branch with one hand and holding onto a tube connected to the remaining five people with her other hand, the news release states. Without knowing how long the woman could hold onto the limb, firefighters quickly made their way down the river bank using a rope and extended a pole for the woman to grip.

Once stabilized, firefighters suspended a roof ladder into the water for the victims to climb out and up the bank, the release states. No injuries were reported.

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