{"id":129252,"date":"2021-06-18T03:15:23","date_gmt":"2021-06-18T03:15:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=129252"},"modified":"2021-06-18T03:15:23","modified_gmt":"2021-06-18T03:15:23","slug":"3-dead-2-people-missing-after-going-over-steep-dam-while-tubing-along-north-carolina-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/world-news\/3-dead-2-people-missing-after-going-over-steep-dam-while-tubing-along-north-carolina-river\/","title":{"rendered":"3 dead, 2 people missing after going over steep dam while tubing along North Carolina river"},"content":{"rendered":"
Three people are dead and two remain missing after five people who were tubing on a North Carolina river went over the edge of a steep dam, authorities said.<\/p>\n
The five tubers were part of a group of nine people total who went tubing on the Dan River Wednesday evening, according to the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office.<\/p>\n
The group’s tubes were believed to be tied together, but at one point several came apart. The tubers floated over the dam, located near a local power plant, at around 7 or 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, authorities said.<\/p>\n
Four people who were “hanging on to various items” were rescued from the river at around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Lt. Kevin Suthard, a spokesperson for the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office, told ABC Radio. They were sent to a hospital for treatment, he said. They are expected to recover, officials said.<\/p>\n
Two people are still missing after going over the edge of a dam, the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office said. A search and rescue effort is currently underway from the Duke Energy plant to the Virginia state line, authorities said.<\/p>\n
“We have done both an air and water search at this time,” Rockingham County Emergency Services Director Rodney Cates told Winston-Salem, North Carolina, ABC affiliate WXLV Thursday evening, prior to the three victims being found.<\/p>\n
Aircraft have searched the river 6 miles into Virginia and back and along the ground adjacent to the river, Cates said. Another aircraft search is planned for Thursday night equipped with an infrared camera.<\/p>\n
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“They’ll be able to look at night, pick up heat images at night, in case they were able to get out of the river,” Cates said.<\/p>\n
Two boats are also searching the river.<\/p>\n
Tubing is a “regular activity” in the area, said Suthard, though he added that people are discouraged from tubing near the dam.<\/p>\n
“It’s a pretty steep drop,” he said.<\/p>\n
ABC News’ Will McDuffie contributed to this report.<\/em><\/p>\n