First responders were called to the area of County Road 700E and County Road 800N in the Seymour for a water rescue involving six people and a dog at 10:46 a.m. Thursday.
CORTLAND — Emergency personnel continue to search for a person reported missing after an airboat capsized early Friday morning in the Blue Hole area off State Road 258 east of Cortland.
That incident was reported in the 5500 block of East State Road 258, according to police scanner traffic.
Indiana Conservation Officers said at about 7:20 a.m., a subject was reported missing after a boat capsized in floodwater east of Cortland near County Road 400 E and State Road 258. Multiple agencies responded to the scene to assist.
An initial investigation revealed that two individuals attempted to assist people stranded in a submerged vehicle when their airboat experienced mechanical issues and was forced under a nearby bridge by swift floodwater.
The operator of the airboat was able to self-rescue and get to safety. The passenger in the boat was last seen in the water downstream where the boat capsized. Neither individual was wearing a life jacket.
Swift current and debris in the area are hampering search efforts.
Other agencies assisting on scene are the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Jackson County Emergency Medical Services, and the Hamilton Township Volunteer Fire Department, using at least three boats and drones in an effort to locate the missing person. Heavy fog at that time also hampered rescue efforts.
The incident is just one of seven water rescues reported to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department over the past couple of days because of flooding created by the 3 to 5 inches of rain — or more — that has fallen.
The other water rescues Friday morning include one in the 4100 block of East County Road 750N, Seymour, and at County Road 300N and County Road 225W in the Brownstown area.
Water rescues reported Thursday include one at 10:45 p.m. in the 8500 block of East State Road 250 in the Seymour area; another reported at 3:11 p.m. in the 9900 block of North County Road 375E in the Madden Hill area north of Seymour; and at County Road 400 and County Road 600N in the Seymour area at 12:55 p.m. There also was one reported in the area of St. John’s Lutheran Church Sauers at 7:47 a.m.
The East Fork White River in Jackson County crested at 19.49 feet, the sixth highest on record, at 9:30 p.m. Thursday, according to the gauge at Rockford, just north of Seymour.
The river is not expected to fall below flood stage (12 feet) until sometime Wednesday morning. Information about the river is available at https://water.noaa.gov/gauges/seri3.
There have been numerous water rescues since the heavy rains started falling, leading to the flooding earlier in the week. One of the more recent water rescue occurred just after 6 a.m. Friday the 4100 block of East County 750N.
The Brownstown Fire Department Swift Water Rescue Team, was called to bring its hovercraft to that area to help first responders from Hamilton Township Volunteer Fire Department with that rescue. A semitrailer also was reported in a ditch on State Road 250.
With the East Fork White River at 19 feet, major flooding is in progress in Jackson County. Evacuations may be necessary near Rockford, near Brownstown and at the collection of river cabins in the Shieldstown area, which is about six miles west of Seymour.
Many roads are flooded, including Lower Rockford Road just south of Reddington Road. Seventy percent of the flood plain in Jackson County is under water. For a map of road closures in the county, visit https://jacksonin.wthgis.com/.
A year ago, on April 6, the river rose to 19.78 feet — the third highest on the record. The highest river on record was on March 26, 1913, when it crested at 21.00 feet, and the second highest was on June 8, 2008, when the river crested at 20.91 feet.
