Officials say the search for a 7-year-old boy who fell into North Carolina’s Tar River is now a recovery effort.
Around 5 p.m. Tuesday, Franklin County Emergency Management informed the boy’s family that the mission was shifting from search and rescue to search and recovery, FOX 8 reports.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, police began conducting the search Monday, after the child fell into the river while playing outside with other children, while adults supervised. Emergency management said a man jumped in after the boy, in an attempt to rescue him before first responders arrived.
The area where the boy fell is about 12 to 15 feet deep, and the water conditions have been murky, NC Beat reports.
On the second day of the search, dive teams from several agencies spent nine hours using underwater drones, sonar devices, aerial drones, and additional boats. They combed through up to three miles of water, which is 12 to 15 feet deep, in Franklin County off Hodges Road, between Louisburg and Franklinton.
“There’s a lot of undercurrent here,” Franklin County Emergency Management Director Nicholas Thorpe said. “When we’re searching, someone’s been swept on the surface of whole way.”
Check back for updates.
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