Rescue workers searching for a missing boy in the Yellow River since Saturday afternoon discovered his body Sunday morning, according to Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services.
The boy was identified Monday as 4-year-old Nasir Mitchell by the Gwinnett Medical Examiner’s Office. He disappeared around 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Yellow River Park, about six miles southwest of Snellville on Juhan Road.
Gwinnett firefighters worked for hours Saturday searching for Mitchell using boats, drones and a helicopter with infrared cameras. Ground crews suspended their search around 8 p.m. due to loss of daylight and unsafe conditions, but aerial searches continued until after midnight, officials said.
The boy’s body was found around 10:30 a.m. Sunday.
“This was not the outcome everybody was hoping for,” said Gwinnett fire Capt. Ryan McGiboney, who said Mitchell’s body was discovered near the river’s edge by the department’s swift water rescue team.
Mitchell’s mother told authorities she was near the river with her son when she noticed he was missing. She said she saw him briefly before he disappeared under the water.
A 911 caller said Mitchell was seen floating down the river, unable to get out. The mother confirmed he was not wearing a life vest. The release did not specify where Mitchell was found, although witnesses last saw him downstream toward the Annistown Road bridge.
Sunday’s search involved three boats working in a grid pattern down river from the part aided by search parties on the shore. Bad weather moving through the area prevented the use of aerial search vehicles.
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources and the Gwinnett County Emergency Management Agency assisted fire officials in the search.
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