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Son of Carnegie Mellon University president dies in 'drowning accident' in Pittsburgh river

It isn't clear why Thomas Jahanian, 28, was in the Monongahela River on Saturday.
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The son of the president of Carnegie Mellon University died over the weekend after he was pulled out of a river in Pittsburgh.

The man, Thomas Jahanian, 28, the son of CMU President Farnam Jahanian, "tragically passed away in a drowning accident," university spokeswoman Shilpa Bakre said in a statement Monday.

Monongahela
River Rescue responded to the south side of the Monongahela River for reports of a male who was observed going under the water before 1:45 p.m. Saturday.Pittsburgh Public Safety

Police said Jahanian was seen going under the water shortly before 2 p.m. Saturday, NBC affiliate WPXI reported.

It isn't clear why Jahanian was in the Monongahela River. Police said in a statement that he was seen going under near a bridge in Pittsburgh.

Rescue divers retrieved his body within minutes, the police department said. He was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

"The Jahanian family expresses immense gratitude toward the bystander who saw him in need of assistance while swimming and immediately called 911, in addition to the rescue teams on the scene and the medical professionals at the hospital," Bakre said.

Farnam Jahanian, a computer scientist, became the university's president in 2018.