By Beth Lawrence
A nearly 24-hour search for a missing swimmer ended tragically Monday.
On Monday evening, emergency personnel located the body of a 22-year-old man following a search and rescue effort.
Jackson County first responders were notified Sunday, July 27 around 4 p.m. of a missing swimmer at the Pines Recreation Area at Lake Glenville on Pine Creek Road, Emergency Management Director Todd Dillard said.
“Glenville-Cashiers Rescue received a call for a possible drowning victim,” Dillard said.
Boats and search teams were dispatched to the area and a search began. Searchers and support personnel Sunday included Jackson County, GCRS. Jackson Emergency Management, Graham County Emergency Management, North Carolina Wildlife, and North Carolina Emergency Management. The search continued until nearly 10 p.m. Sunday before efforts were paused.
The effort included “running sonar, and Graham County had their underwater drone; we were using three boats and an underwater drone,” Dillard said. “We just were not able to find him on Sunday night.”
On Monday, JCSO announced the search had been declared a recovery effort and the recreation area remained closed. The search resumed around 6:30 a.m. Hendersonville’s dive team joined the search at the request of emergency management.
Henderson County’s team also brought a 360-degree sonar unit that sits on the lake bed.
Approximately 30 people coordinated on land and water to find the missing swimmer.
The search was required to pause due to a late afternoon storm.
Following the storm, Henderson declared that they had done all they could to find the victim, but Jackson and others continued the search relying on an old, manual method of searching.
The young man’s body was located at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Monday.
“We’re all so thankful that we were able to bring closure to the family,” Dillard said. “It was a tragic accident.”
The young man had been playing in the lake and apparently went beyond the designated swimming area though he was unable to swim. There were a lot of boats on the lake Sunday, so the water was likely choppy, Dillard said.
Lake Glenville is deceptive in its makeup; it is shallow for a time and then drops “straight off” into deeper waters with no gradient.
“You really need to stay within the buoys, within the designated swimming areas,” Dillard said.
The lake reaches depths of 80 feet even near the water’s edge and up to 300 feet further out, according to Visit Smokies North Carolina.
The young man’s identity had not been released as of press time.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office posted an announcement Monday evening thanking those who contributed to the search and asking followers to remember the family.
“Please keep his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers,” JCSO said.