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 Lance Martin | Daily Herald Above, Roanoke Valley Rescue Squad members Tommy Exum, left, and Troy Jordan, look for 11-year-old Alvin Lee Harris Jr. Wednesday afternoon. At left, Lt. James Avens of the Weldon Police Department, left, discusses the case with Lt. Corey Jackson of the Northampton County Sheriff's Office. Harris was found this morning around 8:42. |
WELDON - The body of an 11-year-boy who apparently was caught in the swift currents of the Roanoke River Wednesday afternoon was recovered Thursday morning, authorities confirmed.
Alvin Lee Harris Jr. of Thacker Lane, Garysburg, was found around 8:42 this morning, searchers told the Daily Herald.
The child disappeared into the water late Wednesday afternoon.
One witness, Justin Gregg was taking his dog for a walk and saw the children playing. About two minutes later he heard screaming and called 911.
Rescue personnel did a water search and land search after arriving at the scene, Roanoke Valley Rescue Squad Commander Mark Collier said. Dominion lowered the water level to assist rescue workers in the search.
The boy's body was found after rescue personnel spent all night Wednesday searching. They took a break around 4:30 a.m. and then returned to their quest about 5:30 this morning.
Northampton County Sheriff Wardie Vincent said the child's body was found about three quarters of a mile from the Weldon Boat Landing. He said it is not clear whether divers found the child or whether sonar or underwater cameras aided rescuers in locating him.
The child's family was notified soon after he was found. “They are happy with the closure,” Vincent said, “But they are real torn up emotionally.”
Finding a drowning victim early does help the family, the sheriff said, because some searches for drowning victims have gone on for months. “It does make it much better without going through the agony of daily going through it.”
Collier said the child was apparently swept away by swift currents about 3 p.m., as Dominion Power hit full power generation. The child was last seen about a quarter mile from the boat landing.
Vincent said Thacker and a group of children were apparently playing at the water's edge. What happened next remains unclear. “As we talked with the other young people, apparently, when his footing became dislodged is when the water pulled him away.”
Maj. Bill Wheeler of the sheriff's office said there is no real safe point when power is being generated. Currents are swift from shore to shore, he said. “It would have been hard to keep your footing in the water anyway.”
Collier said you have to be an excellent swimmer to negotiate the waters of the river during full power generation.
Update:
Lance Martin
Herald Senior Staff Writer
A collaborative effort among area emergency response teams led to finding a boy who drowned in the Roanoke River Wednesday afternoon.
Littleton Fire Department and Roanoke Valley Rescue Squad divers found 11-year-old Alvin Lee Harris Jr. of Garysburg about three quarters of a mile from the Weldon Boat Landing early Thursday morning.
Harris and several other children were playing around the edge of the water when Harris apparently lost his footing and was carried away by the current, said Maj. Bill Wheeler, of the Northampton County Sheriff's Office.
Northampton County Sheriff Wardie Vincent said emergency responders were fortunate to find the child as early as they did since similar operations have gone on for months. “It was a collective effort. With our limited resources we have to pull together,” he said. “The agencies contacted readily came together to get this effort done ... The idea is to bring closure as quickly as possible to aid the family. We were fortunate to be able to do that today.”
Weldon Fire Chief Rusty Bolt said everyone worked well together. “Everyone came together. No one worried about whose district it was.”
During the night a team from Apex came with Sonar and Roanoke Valley and Littleton worked the entire night, Bolt said.
“It was just a very well organized combined effort between several agencies to recover the child and give the family some type of closure,” said Wheeler.
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