PARAGOULD, Ark. — An adult who attempted to rescue a juvenile at Crowley’s Ridge State Park was found dead Tuesday afternoon. Greene County Sheriff Brad Snyder said deputies responded to an unknown problem call at the park around 7:52 p.m. Monday.
Rescue attempt turns tragic
According to the sheriff’s office, a juvenile and an adult were walking near the park’s swimming area when they entered the water. The swimming area had already been closed for the day. A lifeguard conducting a final check after closing heard the juvenile screaming for help and was able to pull the child from the water.
The juvenile later told authorities they were struggling to stay afloat when the adult tried to get them onto one of the park’s inflatable water features. During that effort, the adult went underwater and did not resurface, Snyder said.
Search and recovery
An off‑duty Greene County sheriff’s deputy who lives nearby arrived with his personal boat, and the sheriff’s office deployed LiveScope sonar equipment to locate the missing person. Crews searched for several hours before suspending operations at about 12:20 a.m. Tuesday.
Snyder noted that darkness, poor underwater visibility, water roughly 14 feet deep and large anchored inflatables made the search difficult and raised safety concerns.
The search resumed Tuesday morning with personnel from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Craighead County Sheriff’s Office Dive Team, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and Arkansas State Parks. At approximately 1:20 p.m., members of the Craighead County Dive Team located the adult’s body. The Greene County Coroner’s Office responded and pronounced the individual dead. Authorities plan to send the body to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for an autopsy.
Identity pending
The identity of the deceased has not been released pending positive identification and notification of next of kin. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Original reporting: NEA Report (Jonesboro) — read the source article.
