NO SIGN OF BOATER MISSING AT LAKE HARTWELL

A man rented a pontoon boat Wednesday at Lake Hartwell, but never returned. “A call went out Wednesday afternoon about a pontoon boat that was rented from the Hartwell Marina and had not returned,” said Craig Fulghum of the Georgia DNR. “The boat was rented by a 69-year old man from Illinois.” According to Fulghum the boat was located around the Carter’s Ferry area anchored about 30 – 40 feet from the South Carolina/Georgia state line, but on the Georgia side. Rescue teams from Hart County, Georgia and surrounding counties, have been working alongside the DNR through the night to try and locate the missing man, but by yesterday morning, he had not been found. To complicate matters, Fulghum said the canopy on the pontoon boat was up, acting like a sail. Fulghum said even if the missing man fell in or dove into the water, there was no way he could have survived trying to swim to shore because of the cold air and frigid water temperatures.