HINESVILLE, Ga. — A Georgia police chief is dealing with tragedy after two members of the Hinesville Fire Department were found dead inside a car across state lines in Tennessee on Sunday.
Hinesville Police Chief Tracey Howard told WJCL 22 News in Savannah he knew Chandler Kuhbander and Raegan Anderson, who were also revealed to be former high school sweethearts. The two firefighters were reported missing for several days before their bodies were discovered.
"I did," Howard told the Savannah station when asked if he knew the two personally. "I had only seen Chandler... but as I was speaking to the mutual family members, I remember being around Raegan when she was a young little girl."
Anderson had last been seen on June 25 at the Liberty County Fire Services Station #1 in Midway, GA. His car was found in Savannah, and Anderson's 2017 Ford Focus was spotted in Richmond Hill.
On June 30, the two were found dead inside dead inside Anderson's vehicle in Cosby, Tennessee. That's nearly 400 miles from Liberty County.
Howard said when the investigation began, he did not realize that it was Raegan who was missing.
"Sometimes you lose touch with people and you don't see them for a while, and when young people are growing up, it seems like a short amount of time and then next thing you know, they're grown," Howard said.
Through the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's (TBI) initial findings, officials determined that Kuhbander and Anderson were alone when they died. It's still unclear what exactly happened in the moments leading up to their deaths.
"I don't believe the investigation is yielding an idea that whatever happened involved anybody else other than the two that were found," Howard said.
The Hinesville Police Department will conduct an investigation when the TBI completes its own.