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Scene where body was found early Monday morning (Nick Parker/Eyewitness News / July 9, 2012) |
Authorities have released the identity of a man whose body was found at Lake Afton. 47-year-old DeWight Givens, went underwater Saturday and didn't come back up.
There's no indication that alcohol was a factor in the drowning.
Crews had been searching for Gibbons since Saturday. His body was recovered early Monday morning.
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Update, July 8th
Search & rescue crews continue their efforts Sunday to locate a swimmer who went missing during the weekend at Lake Afton in Sedgwick County.
The man was last seen Saturday afternoon. A witnesses saw him go under the water, and not come back up. A boater later spotted a body floating along the lake's eastern shore, and called 911. Officials confirmed a person has gone missing from a party.
Crews from Wichita and Sedgwick County fire departments called off the search after it became dark on Saturday, but resumed work on Sunday.
At a media briefing Sunday Morning, Capt. Steve Atkinson with the Sedgwick County Fire Department explained their plan to locate the missing swimmer. It includes boats in the water utilizing sonar and a drag bar, search dogs both in the boats and on the shore, and divers if the boats or dogs find anything.
"The technical rescue teams, which have the boats and is doing the search, train for this a lot," Says Capt. Atkinson. "This is part of their job, the searches on the water."
But Mother Nature is complicating the search. "There is a current out in the lake, and we don't known if the victim has been moved with the current. Or the storm that came through last night, we are not sure where he may have ended up," says Capt. Atkinson.
On top of that, divers are having to search by hand thanks to zero visibility under the water. "It's not necessarily difficult, says Atkinson. "It's just time consuming."
Capt. Atkinson could not provide an exact time frame for how long they will continue the search. "As far as the search goes, we are going hour by hour, waiting to see what we come up with."
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Original Story, July 7th
Sedgwick County and Wichita emergency responders called off their search for the day as a thunderstorm rolled in around sundown. They are looking for man who is believed to have drowned in Lake Afton.
Shortly after five o'clock on Saturday, a boater spotted a body floating in the east side of the lake, a quarter mile from the dam. That followed the report by someone that they saw a swimmer go under and not come back up.
Officials confirmed there is one person from a party who is missing. After a couple hours the rescue effort turned into a recovery operation.
Emergency crews from Wichita and Sedgwick County fire departments searched with sonar, divers and then drag hooks. They say the search is hampered by zero visibility in the water, forcing divers to search by touch.
Authorities are not releasing the man's identity.
