PORTAGE, Wis. (WSAU) — A man and his son both drowned in the Wisconsin River Friday afternoon.
Colombia County Sheriff’s Department officials were called to a scene in the Town of Dekorra south of Portage at around 1:00 p.m. where five people were in the river and yelling for help. Sheriff Dennis Richards says they were on a sandbar that eroded away.
Deputies were able to rescue a woman and two boys. Divers found the body of a 4-year-old boy at about 4 o’clock and the child’s father at about 6 o’clock.
The incident is considered an accident, but a follow-up investigation is underway. Names are being withheld until relatives can be notified.
Emerency officials and the Department of Natural Resources say the river can change very rapidly depending upon things like how much rain has been received and how fast the river is flowing.
