Man who drowned last month in Cedar River identified

A Cedar Rapids man who drowned in the Cedar River last month while swimming has been identified as Clifford Deon Jones.

According to the Cedar Rapids Fire Department, a 911 call was placed just before 5:30 p.m. July 16 by the 44-year-old man’s teenage son, who reported his father had been swimming in the river, but then went underwater and did not resurface.

The son told emergency responders that he and his father had been walking their dogs near First Street and O Avenue NW and they both went into the water to cool off.

Firefighters launched three boats, and after 30 minutes of searching, found the man’s body in about 10 feet of water, 15 feet from the shore, the news release stated.

Police have determined the death to be an accidental drowning.

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