HUTCHINSON COUNTY, S.D. (KELO) — The name has been released of a boy who drowned in the James River on the Tschetter Colony, according to the Hutchinson County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO).
9-year-old Hans Hofer was playing or fishing with friends on the banks of the river on Tuesday, when he fell into the water and couldn’t be rescued.
Several agencies responded to the incident including HCSO, Yankton Search and Rescue, Davison County Search and Rescue, SD Game, Fish and Parks and many area fire departments.
The Canadian Hutterian Emergency Aquatic Response Team (HEART) was contacted at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. HEART contacted the Tschetter Colony and offered to assist with the search. HEART arrived at the scene at about 6:30 Wednesday morning.
HEART officials stated the James River was between 6-8 feet deep, had a current of 2-3 knots and was very muddy at the site. The bottom was cluttered with debris and rocks making sonar searching difficult.
HEART sent a diver down with a tether utilizing their VideoRay Defender ROV. The diver was able to recover Hans body at about 12:15 p.m. Wednesday and bring him to the surface. Hans was released to his family who were waiting nearby.
