Shore Accident Kills Man

Published: Monday, October 10, 2011 1:12 AM CDT From P&D Staff Reports A Yankton man was killed Sunday when he was struck by a vehicle that slipped out of gear and rolled down a river embankment just downstream from Gavins Point Dam. Edward Metter, 65, was killed in the incident, according to a press release from the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office. The accident occurred about 100 yards east of the Missouri River spillway’s observation area. At approximately 1:15 p.m. Sunday, a 1988 Ford F250 pickup truck parked along Training Dike Road slipped out of gear and began rolling down the embankment, according to eyewitness accounts. No one was in the vehicle at the time. As it hit the riprap that studs the embankment, the truck veered and struck the victim. According to reports from officials on the scene, the man was watching family members paddlefishing along the river. The vehicle then crashed into the river and was completely submerged. Several hundred people, most of them anglers, were in the vicinity when the incident occurred. Officials said bystanders immediately began administering CPR to the victim until emergency crews arrived moments later. The victim was transported to Avera Sacred Heart Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to Yankton Assistant Fire Chief Larry Nickles. Yankton Search and Rescue divers were brought in to help retrieve the truck from the water. Discharges from the Gavins Point Dam spillway were shut down for a time while a towing company extracted the vehicle. The incident was investigated by sheriff’s personnel from both Cedar County, which has jurisdiction over the area, and Yankton County. Highway patrol members from Nebraska and South Dakota, along with firefighters and emergency responders from Yankton and officers from Nebraska Game and Parks, were also on hand. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also assisted and is investigating the incident because the accident took place on Corps property. Metter’s funeral services are pending with Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home of Yankton.