Jun 1, 2013 1 min read

CINCINNATI (AP) — The Hamilton County sheriff says a 47-year-old man drowned early Saturday after apparently losing his footing on a steep river bank.

Emergency responders were called to the backyard of a residence in the 4900 block of Lawrenceburg Road in Whitewater Township around midnight about a man unresponsive in the Whitewater River.

The victim was partially under the water. Authorities suspect he slipped and fell down the embankment and landed on a submerged log.

Efforts to revive the man at the scene were unsuccessful. He was recovered from the base of the hill and transported to Mercy Medical Center in Harrison, where he was pronounced dead at 2:13 a.m.

The man’s name was withheld pending notification of his family. Foul play was not suspected.