A man's cries for help pierced the darkness along the Manatee River just before 9 p.m. Saturday, sending Bradenton Police officers rushing to the water near 801 Riverside Dr. E, the site formerly home to Caddy's Bradenton. Officers could hear the man's voice echoing across the river but couldn't immediately pinpoint his location in the black water.
According to the Bradenton Police Department
, officers responding to the reports kept listening for the man's voice from shore while a civilian boater in the area agreed to help with the search. Sgt. Perez, Officer Bautista and Officer M. Wall all boarded the civilian's boat to get closer to where the sound was coming from, while additional officers stayed on the riverbank tracking his cries. The department also requested help from the Manatee County Sheriff's Office Aviation Unit, whose helicopters helped locate the man during the nighttime search, according to the
Manatee County Sheriff's Office
.
An Hour in the Water Near the Green Bridge
By the time officers reached him, the 33-year-old man had been in the water for at least an hour, per officers cited in the department's statement. Officers on the boat were able to persuade him to climb aboard, and the civilian boater's willingness to lend his vessel helped bring the rescue to a safe conclusion, the department said. EMS crews then transported the man to a hospital, where he received evaluation and treatment.
The stretch of river near Riverside Drive East and the Green Bridge is near the historic Green Bridge fishing pier that stretches 2,000 feet over the Manatee River, per Salt Chef, making it a heavily trafficked stretch of waterfront even after dark.
A Mental Health Crisis Behind the Rescue
Police said the man was experiencing a mental health crisis at the time of the incident. Under Florida's Baker Act, codified in Florida Statute Chapter 394, officers are legally authorized to initiate an emergency involuntary examination when they have reason to believe someone poses a serious threat of harm to themselves or others, according to Recovery.com. That law allows for up to a 72-hour evaluation window at a designated receiving facility, though it's unclear whether that process applies in this case.
Situations like this one often fall to whichever officers happen to answer the call.
A Familiar Stretch of River for Emergency Crews
This isn't the first time Bradenton's waterfront near the Green Bridge has drawn a major multi-agency response. In July 2025, police officers and fire crews responded to the same stretch of river after juveniles fired a flare gun and set a 45-foot yacht ablaze, according to Fox 13 Tampa Bay. Just two months ago, two 17-year-olds entered the Manatee River, one requiring rescue, and deputies did not initiate a vehicle pursuit, according to a report on the incident.
Bradenton Police also maintain a Marine Patrol unit that patrols on the Manatee River, per the department's own social media posts. The unit's regular presence underscores how central water rescues have become to policing this section of the riverfront.
Officials have not released the man's current condition following his hospital evaluation, nor have they said how he came to enter the river. Florida residents facing a mental health crisis, or witnessing one, can call or text 988 at any hour to reach free, confidential crisis counseling connecting them to regional specialists across the state, according to Recovery.com.
