×

Dive team searches river for worker’s body in Natchez

By Rachel Hernandez Feb 10, 2023 | 10:36 AM

NATCHEZ, Miss. (WJTV) – A private dive team was hired to search for a worker’s body in the Mississippi River after he fell into the water.

The Natchez Democrat reported Buzzi Unicern employee, 50-year-old Donny Mitchell, went into the water around 4:30 a.m. on Tuesday, February 7.

Witnesses said he was climbing a ladder from a barge up to a walkway above when he fell into the river. They threw a life preserver ring to him and tried to drag him with a hook, but neither worked.

Multiple agencies have since been working to recover his body. Buzzi Unicern hired a private dive team to continue the search on Friday morning.

According to the newspaper, barges and a dock were moved to help in the search. A sonar radar picked up on objects in the water, but the water is too murky to be able to determine what the objects are.

  • (Courtesy: Adams County Sheriff’s Office)
  • (Courtesy: Adams County Sheriff’s Office)
  • (Courtesy: Adams County Sheriff’s Office)
  • (Courtesy: Adams County Sheriff’s Office)

Adams County Sheriff Travis Patten said crews are working to identify the objects caught on sonar.