Authorities continued a search Sunday in the waters of Lake Allatoona for the body of a man from Cedartown presumed to have drowned Saturday.
The victim is James Marquez Prater, a 28-year-old from Cedartown who lived in Adairsville, who was reportedly in an inner-tube pulled by a rental boat from the Navy recreation center, according to Georgia Department of Natural Resources Sgt. Mike Barr. Ten people were in the boat, according to Barr, who said there are multiple versions of what exactly happened in the incident. The Bartow County Sheriff's Office had received a call Saturday at 1:30 p.m. about the incident at a popular beach and swimming area off Sandtown Road.
The search-and-rescue effort has shifted to a recovery operation that resumed early Sunday morning, Barr said. The Department of Natural Resources is working with Bartow County Sheriff's Office, fire and rescue, dive team and Corps of Engineers to locate the body underwater using side-scan sonar equipment. Once a target is found, the dive team will search for the body, Barr said
Hopes are to complete the recovery Sunday, but a number of factors could extend the process longer, including weather and how clean the bottom of the lake is, he said.
The water is an average of 50 feet deep, but a channel that runs through the area is close to 100 feet deep. Agencies are working to keep boat traffic from the area where the search is underway, though boats can still go up and down the lake, Barr said.
Barr added that skiers, including people on inner-tubes, are required to wear life jackets. He said indications thus far are that Pradier was not wearing one. He encouraged those on the water to wear life jackets.
"It's very similar to a seat belt in a car. If you need it, it's too late to put it on," Barr said.
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