Ontario's Special Investigations Unit is investigating after a man died following a police pursuit in Niagara Falls late Tuesday afternoon.

According to the SIU, the deceased and a Niagara police officer fell into the Niagara Gorge on River Road, between Otter and Eastwood streets, shortly after 5 p.m.

The man succumbed to his injuries. The police officer sustained a broken femur in the fall, and was transported via air ambulance to Hamilton General Hospital.

The SIU has assigned seven investigators and two forensic investigators to probe the circumstances of the incident.

The SIU is an arm's-length agency called in to investigate whenever someone is killed or seriously hurt while interacting with police.