“We want to send our condolences to Cody’s family in their time of tragedy,” Haller said.
Recovery efforts included divers and other specialty teams using side scan and underwater sonar, drones and specially trained K-9s.
A friend reported Caraway missing Sunday after he didn’t return from fishing after sunset. Caraway’s vehicle was at the gravel pits where he had been fishing, but no fishing gear or poles were found inside.
Tipp City police, fire and EMS crews, the Vandalia Fire Division and an Ohio State Highway Patrol helicopter on Sunday night searched grounds near the gravel pit and used drones equipped with thermal imagery, but did not detect any heat signatures from a person alive in or near the water.
A shoe, two fishing poles and a tackle box found in the water around 11 a.m. Monday by a crew from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources was the only trace of Caraway until his body was recovered Tuesday. The friend who reported him missing confirmed the items belonged to Caraway. The search was called off for the day around 5 p.m. Monday, with Tipp City police remaining on the scene to secure the area, as the department had the night before.
Crews returned to Ohio 571 to resume the search around 8 a.m. Tuesday.
Multiple other agencies assisted, including Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Fire Department, Piqua Fire Department, Region 3 Technical Rescue Team, Beavercreek Twp. Fire Department, All SAR K9 and Search and Rescue Ohio.
“The recovery is a total team effort,” Haller said. “We are extremely grateful of the Miami Valley’s multitude of resources in emergency services.”
Despite warmer weather, Haller said the water is still cold and can transfer heat from the body quickly.
“If you are going to go fishing, we implore you to wear a life jacket at all times,” he said.
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