Man drowns after rescuing girl in river

The body of a 55-year-old man who jumped into a river to save a young girl has been
found in south-western NSW.
Scott Ryan, a weak swimmer, was with a 47-year-old female friend and her
seven-year-old granddaughter at Yanco's Horn Beach on the Murrumbidgee River, near
Leeton, about 4.40pm Sunday.
When the girl got into trouble in the water, the father-of-three and the grandmother
leapt in after her.
Mr Ryan managed to pull the girl to the safety of a partly submerged tree but then
experienced difficulties himself before disappearing under the water.
The woman and the girl were both rescued from the river.
The NSW Police Force said Mr Ryan's body was found about 3pm Monday.
Andrew Hurst, licensee of Leeton's Wade Hotel, where Mr Ryan was a regular, said the
town was saddened by news of the affable truck driver's death.
"He'd come in here a couple of times a week after work."
"He was a good all round Aussie bloke. I know that's a cliche," he told AAP.
Mr Ryan had three children - Chelsea, aged 11, Lindsay, 15, and Tommy, 19 - with his
ex-wife Cindy Tiffen, who works at the Wade Hotel as a cook. Mr Ryan was single.
Ms Tiffen had remained friendly with her ex-husband, Mr Hurst said.
He said he was not surprised Mr Ryan jumped in the river to save the girl, despite
not being a strong swimmer.
"He was your typical Australian knockabout ocker bloke, that was what he felt his
duty was," he said.
"He went in to do that and one come out and one didn't."
He said the Murrumbidgee River's current in the area could vary dramatically during
the irrigation season.
"The current can go from nothing to a lot on a day. It all depends on how much water
they're letting down the river from irrigation purposes."