NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — The grim search of the waters of the Alcovy River at Factory Shoals Park in Newton County has been called off again Wednesday over the treat of storms in the area.
It comes after a days-long search for two people who reportedly did not come back to the surface after going underwater on Tuesday.
According to Newton County Sheriff's Department Spokesperson Caitlyn Jett, a dive team went out Tuesday night looking for the two people - ages 14 and 38. However, the search was forced to be called off as darkness fell in the area.
The search resumed the following day on Wednesday afternoon. That's when family members, who had gathered there during the search, identified the two people as 14-year-old Dejerein Grier and 38-year-old Antonio Perry.
Perry's daughter, Najwa Perry, told 11Alive News that he was out fishing with his girlfriend's 14-year-old son.
She said that Grier jumped into the water, apparently to swim and that Perry jumped in to rescue him. Soon afterward, she said, the boy jumped in again, and her dad followed in an attempt to save him but was not successful.
"They didn't make the second time," she said. "something just kept pulling them down."
"My father was just trying to save him," she explained, saying that her dad was a good swimmer.
Photos: Search for 2 missing in Alcovy River in Newton County
According to Jett, crews were able to recover the body of Perry, but they have not yet found the body of Grier. The search was called off again, Wednesday evening, over the threat of severe weather in the area.
MORE HEADLINES |