A naked, intoxicated man masturbating in public view along the Willamette River required an emergency rescue on Saturday when he fell into the water.

Oregon City Police said officers spotted the man on a cliff bank near the Oregon City/West Linn Arch bridge around 2:17 p.m. Officers tried to talk with the man, who was about 75 feet below them, but he was apparently under the influence of drugs, police said.

Officers soon requested help from the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office Marine Unit. When sheriff's deputies and police in a boat made contact with the man, he was drifting in and out of consciousness and soon fell into the river.

Officers pulled the man onto the boat and took him to a hospital for medical evaluation, police said. The man was identified as 31-year-old Ernest Michael Kirk, who police said is a transient.

On Monday, Oregon City Police spotted Kirk near Clackamette Park and arrested him. Kirk was booked into Clackamas County Jail on charges of felony public indecency, harassment and a parole violation.

-- Michael Bamesberger