OCCOQUAN, Va. -- Two fishermen found a woman, barely alive, floating in the Occoquan River near the heart of the town late Thursday afternoon.
The fishermen spotted the woman about 4 p.m. between the riverbank and a dock below Mill Street, near the Loft Art Gallery and Miller's Lighthouse Store in Occoquan.
Dwayne Miller called 911 for help when he saw the fishermen pull the unidentified woman from the river.
Miller, who owns a small shop that backs to the river in Occoquan's historic shopping district on Mill Street, said he heard the fishermen yelling for help after they found her floating between a boat dock and the river bank.
When out of the water, Miller said the girl, who appeared to be Hispanic or Middle Eastern and in her early 20s, was barley conscious.
"She could understand English and what I was saying to her, but she was barely able to make a noise in response," said Miller, a retired medical technician.
The woman was breathing when she was pulled from the water, police said. She was flown by helicopter to a trauma center.
"Right now, police are in the area and investigating what happened. But we still don't have enough information to identify the woman," said Prince William police spokeswoman Erika Hernandez on Thursday afternoon.
As part of the investigation, police roped off a portion of the river bank where she was found.
"They just don't let anybody on the docks here," said Ron Myers, who lives near where the woman was found. "When I moved in a few weeks ago, I had to get permission from my landlord to even walk on the dock."
The girl's condition was not released at press time.
Stay with insidenova.com for the latest on this story.
Staff writer Uriah A. Kiser can be reached at 703-530-3905.
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