BATH — Emergency responders have been unable to find the body of a man who reportedly jumped off the Woolwich end of the Sagadahoc Bridge Nov. 3, but they believe they now know his identity.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel Merry said on Wednesday that the jumper is believed to be Edwin Curtis, 33, a transient with ties to the Bath and Brunswick area. Curtis is about 6 feet tall, about 175 pounds, and white, with a shaved head.

Witnesses reported seeing him jump into the Kennebec River at 5:11 p.m. Nov. 3. The Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Department investigated the jumper’s identity while the Maine Marine Patrol headed the water search. Bath’s Police and Fire departments were also involved in the search, along with Bath Iron Works security, the Maine State Police and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Merry said the search was called off around noon on Nov. 5, with heavy rainfall coming in. The search was intense, he said, involving a helicopter, several watercraft and divers.

With responders unable to make a recovery, the investigation became a missing person search, Merry said.

They found a backpack in the water which witnesses had reportedly seen on Curtis’s back, Merry said. Although no official identification was found in the bag, papers and other articles led investigators to the conclusion that it belonged to Curtis.

Merry, who worked for the Bath Police Department for 25 years, said several people have gone into the Kennebec River and not been found.

“It’s a very turbulent river because of the tides and the undercurrents, and it makes searching very difficult,” he said.

Alex Lear can be reached at 373-9060 ext. 113 or alear@theforecaster.net