Clay County -- Clay County Fire & Rescue posted the following on social media June 11, 2026: On June 9, just after 7:30 p.m., Clay County Fire & Rescue was dispatched to the Recreation Park Campground for a report of a man who had fallen from a kayak and was in distress.
Firefighters, paramedics from Clay County EMS, deputies from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, rescue swimmers, and the department’s rescue boat arrived within minutes. Upon arrival, responders were advised that the victim had gone underwater and had not been seen for some time. Utilizing the sonar system aboard the department’s rescue boat, personnel began searching the area in an attempt to locate the victim.
As the incident progressed, additional resources were requested to assist with search efforts. Resources responding included Clay County EMS, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, Clay County Emergency Management, Murphy SCUBA, Henderson County Rescue Squad, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Macon County Sheriff’s Office, Graham County Emergency Services, Hiawassee Dam Fire Department, Towns County Fire Rescue, Cherokee County Emergency Management, the Tennessee Valley Authority Police Department, and North Carolina Emergency Management.
After it was determined that the victim had been underwater for approximately 30 minutes, operations transitioned from a rescue effort to a recovery operation.
Search efforts continued throughout the evening utilizing boats, sonar, rescue swimmers, divers, and aerial resources. Unfortunately, due to the loss of daylight and approaching storms, incident commanders determined that it was no longer safe to continue operations. The search was suspended just before midnight.
On June 10, command of the incident was transferred to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, as Lake Chatuge falls under their jurisdiction. Search operations resumed throughout the day with the assistance of numerous local, state, and regional partners.
At approximately 8:00 p.m. on June 10, the victim’s remains were located and recovered.
Clay County Fire & Rescue extends its sincere appreciation to all responding agencies and organizations for their assistance, professionalism, and cooperation throughout this incident. Most importantly, our thoughts and condolences are with the victim’s family and loved ones during this difficult time.
Edit: it was brought to our attention that we omitted Cherokee County Emergency Management from the list of agencies that assisted with the operations. This has been corrected.