A man jumped from the Gervais Street Bridge Wednesday morning, Jan. 16.

The Gervais Street and Blossom Street bridges over the Congaree River were closed before 11 am.

“A man jumped off the bridge, that’s all we know,” said Assistant West Columbia Police Chief Scott Morrison.

The blocked-off bridges resulted in long lines of traffic in Cayce and West Columbia. Some motorists detoured to the Jarvis Klapman Bridge over the river.

Units from West Columbia and Cayce fire and police were on the scene.

By the afternoon, the bridges were opened as the SC Department of Natural Resources and SLED continued to search for the man.

A helicopter crew searched the river, but the man was not found.

In incidents on river, it can take days or weeks before evidence of a jumper or missing boater is found.