Nashville city leaders plan to secure Cumberland River
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A second person fell into the Cumberland River and sparked a high-profile search. That woman was reported missing early Thursday morning.
The last time that the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) was searching the river in a high-profile case was for Missouri college student Riley Strain.
Later Thursday morning, the New Jersey woman was found safe. MNPD searched for 33-year-old Alexandria Chmiel of New Jersey for nearly seven hours, .
“We all know that the river moves really fast and has a strong current, so it is a miracle she was able to pull herself out,” Sergeant Bob Nielson with MNPD’s Cold Case unit explained.
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Chmiel reportedly got separated from her friends on Broadway around 2 a.m. She was reported missing around 3 a.m. News 2 was live when she was first spotted after climbing up the riverbank around 9 a.m. Thursday morning.
MNPD told News 2 that, as with the search for Strain, surveillance footage helped authorities rule out foul play and determine her travel direction.
“A lot of those cameras were instrumental in showing there was no crime that occurred,” Nielson said. “It gives a better idea of their behavior and demeanor up until the point that we lose sight of them.”
The search was focused near the Gay Street connector and the Woodland Street Bridge, which is also where Strain was last seen alive. Strain’s body was recovered nearly four months ago after he went missing during a night of drinks on Broadway.
“When people fall into the river, and this was the problem we had with the previous high-profile incident … People who are not from the area [and people who] don’t live near a river don’t understand the power of a river,” Nielson said. “It is very hard, especially if somebody is having some kind of medical episode, under the influence of alcohol, or some other kind of substance.”
A Metro Councilmember for that area, Jacob Kupin, has pushed to bring some sort of guardrail to that area.
“I want folks to know that we take this very seriously, and after Riley, we made some very big strides, and this is going to continue to embolden our efforts,” Kupin told News 2.
Kupin said the plan is still to install fencing or barriers by the cliffside areas along the Cumberland River. However, he added that they are waiting for funding.
“We are not blocking access to the river; this is a cliffside,” Kupin explained. “Anybody that is walking along there, I think maybe there is some inherent risk.”
“Falling down the embankment, there are rocks, all kinds of tree roots, and so forth that protrude from the ground,” Nielson said. “It is still very hazardous.”
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As a temporary fix, Kupin said the program Red Frogs USA has been helping eventgoers get home safely. Kupin plans to make Red Frogs a permanent feature on Broadway.
Most recently, Red Frogs USA worked along Broadway for CMA Fest and the 4th of July. According to the Red Frogs, they handed out 33,000 cups of water during CMA Fest and charged over 1,000 phones.
However, he said he is still working on a short-term fix to secure the cliff side.
“I don’t have an exact answer on what that looks like yet, but to me, it is really important that we get that area secured,” Kupin said. “I have calls out to folks out at the Mayor’s Office, parks, and NDOT. Just to kind of understand what we can do in the short term.”
“Our departments have been studying safety along the river and determined a centralized effort and an understanding of successful approaches from other cities would be the most fruitful path forward. This effort is already in motion.”
Statement from Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s office
A representative from O’Connel’s office added that the Office of Emergency Management, Metro Parks, MNPD, the Nashville Department of Transportation, the Metro Public Health Department and Metro Water Services have all engaged in a coordinated effort to improve river safety. They began the process in April.
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Kupin said that the goal is to help everyone get home safely.
“On the one hand, one death or one injury with a situation like that is one too many,” Kupin said. “At the same time, I want to reiterate to folks that we have hundreds of thousands of people that come to our city every weekend and have various safe experiences.”
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