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Safety officials warn of open water following Maumee River water rescues

The warning comes following a near-drowning incident at Weirs Rapids in Bowling Green earlier this week.

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio — As the weather heats up, heading out on the river might sound like a great idea.

But safety officials are reminding everyone to be aware of their surroundings at all times. This comes following a near-drowning incident at Weirs Rapids in Bowling Green earlier this week.

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"It seems like once a year, or once every other year we get a call out there for a river rescue," said Washington Township Fire Chief Bill Gase.

Chief Gase had members of his crew respond on Tuesday and said the area gets deep very fast. He encourages anyone venturing out into the river to wear a life jacket, as the current changes on a day-to-day basis.

"Life jackets, they will protect you," Chief Gase said. "Hopefully you're with at least one other person, and remember depths vary a lot in the river and the current is moving." 

Bruce Seeger has lived near Weirs Rapids for almost 40 years and assisted with the rescue on Tuesday. He says this is not the first time he's helped or witnessed a rescue like this, as oftentimes people don't realize how fast it gets deep.

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"Well it's a fun place and it's rapids, so it's very shallow," Seeger said. "You see people out there up to their ankles, but over here there's a hole. And all the years we've lived here there's probably been 8-10 drownings."

Wood County EMA Director Jeff Klein said many people don't realize how holes go undetected. Many people also believe being able to swim in the pool is the same as swimming in open water. 

"The holes would look shallow, you'd see people stepping, and all of the sudden there would be a four-foot hole and they fall in the hole," he said.

Ohio Department of Natural Resources owns Weirs Rapids. Representatives did not initially respond to questions regarding if additional signage would go up at the park following the near-drowning incident. 

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