Police searching for man who went missing in Chattahoochee River Monday afternoon

The Cobb County Police Department is searching for a man who went missing while swimming in the Chattahoochee River Monday afternoon.

Police spokesman Sgt. Wayne Delk said a group of teens or young adults was swimming in the river Monday near the popular “Diving Rock” in the Sandy Point Park area near Akers Mill Road.

At one point, the missing man, who police described only as a young adult, went under and did not resurface. Cobb County firefighters searched for him Monday night to no avail, Delk said.

Cobb police dive teams resumed the search Tuesday morning near the rock, where water can be 12 to 20 feet deep depending on conditions, Officer Shenise Barner told the MDJ.

Tony Locke, a Chamblee resident who comes to the area often, said he was fishing on the opposite riverbank Monday when the man suddenly went under. Though he didn’t see what precipitated the incident, the young man didn’t appear to call for help.

“I saw no struggling whatsoever,” said Locke.

Locke said it’s not the first time he’s seen someone in danger of drowning in the area.

“It’s not unusual for kids to go over there and get into serious, serious trouble. They just don’t realize how dangerous it is,” he added. “...Over the years I’ve been coming down here, it’s a rare year that I don’t see the fast water rescue come to retrieve a body.”

At 1 p.m. Tuesday, the search was put on hold due to turbulent waters and low visibility caused by Monday’s thunderstorms and a water release upstream. National Park Service and Georgia Department of Natural Resources officers were also on-scene.

The search is now considered a recovery operation, police said.