Mount Hope Bridge, RI

PORTSMOUTH, R.I. -- Ice in Narragansett Bay hampered the search for a person who jumped from the Mount Hope Bridge Friday just before 1:15 p.m., a Portsmouth Fire Department official said.

Several motorists witnessed the jump, Deputy Fire Chief Michael P. O'Brien said in a news release.

Several fire department marine units were unable to respond because of ice in the bay, O'Brien said, but Portsmouth Marine 2, with assistance from New England Boat Works staff, was able to punch through.

Crews spent more than 2 hours searching for the missing man, O'Brien said, but returned to the East Passage Yachting Center as conditions worsened.

The Coast Guard continued to search until sundown, but did not find anything and then suspended their search, said spokesman Ross Ruddell.

Rhode Island State Police and police from Portsmouth and Bristol were part of the response, as were a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter from Otis Air Station and a vessel from Castle Hill, O'Brien said.