Man dies from injuries sustained in cliff jump into Long Lake

A man died Sunday while jumping from a cliff into Long Lake, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said.

Witnesses told deputies that the man had jumped from an area known as “The Cove,” the same location where a 22-year-old man died while cliff jumping in 2019.

At the time of the 2019 incident, the assistant chief of emergency for Spokane County Fire District 9 told The Spokesman-Review that emergency crews often respond to injuries at The Cove from people who don’t jump far enough out into the lake to avoid rocks. The Cove is within the Fisk State Park property.

Spokane and Stevens county law enforcement responded to a call at about 7 p.m. Sunday regarding someone who jumped off cliffs upriver of Long Lake Dam and did not resurface.

Witnesses pulled the man from under the water and started to perform CPR on him while they tried to move him to Willow Bay Marina in Stevens County, according to a release from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office.

Spokane and Stevens county fire departments attempted life-saving techniques on the male when he reached Willow Bay, but he died of his injuries, according to the release.

At the marina, deputies learned from witnesses that the male jumped from the 50-foot cliff, the release said.

Officials had yet to determine a cause of death as of Tuesday afternoon, but Spokane deputies said it appeared to be a tragic accident.

“Please remember to use caution in and around our waterways as you try to escape this record heat we are experiencing. No one starts a day of fun at the lake expecting to have things turn so suddenly and deadly,” the sheriff’s office news release said. “Please use caution, be safe, and always wear your life jacket.”