Search for Missing Swimmer in Missouri River

The search for a 25-year-old man who went missing while swimming in the Missouri River has transitioned into a recovery effort.

Why it matters: The incident highlights the dangers of swimming in the Missouri River without proper safety precautions, such as wearing a life jacket.

The details:

• The Kansas City Police Department received a call just before 9 p.m. on Wednesday, reporting that the man had entered the river around 3 p.m. but couldn’t make it back to shore due to the strong current.
• The last known sighting of the man was near an outcropping of rocks.
• The Kansas City Fire Department deployed its Rescue Division with three boats and two drones to search the river along the riverfront until 1 a.m. before suspending the search.
• The search resumed on Thursday morning, led by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, but transitioned into a recovery effort by the afternoon.

The search crews used manual search techniques and thermal imaging from drones to survey the river, banks, outcroppings, strainers, and islands. Although the drones identified multiple areas of interest, physical searches of those areas came back negative.

What they’re saying:

• “If you’re in a body of water that has a current, get on your back as flat as you can, use your arms like rudders, and direct yourself toward the bank,” said KCFD Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.

Hopkins emphasized the importance of wearing a life jacket in the Missouri River due to its intense currents, which are unlike those in pools or lakes.

What’s next: The Kansas City Fire Department and the Missouri State Highway Patrol will continue to search periodically over the next several days in hopes that the missing swimmer will surface.

Full story

The Missouri State Highway Patrol is continuing the search for a 25-year-old man who went missing while swimming in the Missouri River on Wednesday. The Kansas City Fire Department received a report about the missing swimmer around 9:00 p.m.

According to the caller, their friend had entered the river to swim at around 3:00 p.m. but was unable to make it back to shore due to the strong current. The last known sighting of the man was near an outcropping of rocks.

A search crew consisting of three boats and two drones surveyed the river along the riverfront until 1:00 a.m. before suspending the search. The fire department deployed its Rescue Division, using manual search techniques along with the drones’ thermal imaging capabilities to scan the river, banks, outcroppings, strainers, and islands. Although the drones identified multiple areas of interest for boat crews to investigate, physical searches of those areas came back negative.

Search efforts ongoing for missing swimmer

The search was called off just after 1 a.m., but the Highway Patrol resumed operations Thursday morning at daylight. Just after 5:20 p.m. Thursday, the fire department announced that the search had transitioned to a recovery effort.

The search will continue periodically in the coming days in hopes that the swimmer might surface. KCFD Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins emphasized the importance of wearing a life jacket in the Missouri River due to its intense currents, which are unlike those in pools or lakes. Hopkins advised that if someone falls into the water without a flotation device, they should avoid fighting the current and instead use it to their advantage by getting on their back as flat as possible, using their arms like rudders, and directing themselves toward the bank.

The highway patrol is assisting in the search for the missing man, and authorities say they will continue to search periodically over the next several days. More details will be provided as the search efforts continue.