PAWLEYS ISLAND, SC (WBTW) – The Georgetown County Sheriff’s office continues the search for the missing Pawleys Island swimmer.
On Tuesday, Pawleys Island Police Chief Mike Fanning identified the teen as 16-year-old Courtney Dorsey of Maryville.
Midway Fire Rescue Chief Dough Eggiman says the call came in around 7:40 p.m. Sunday, July, 3 and rescue crews searched the ocean for the missing swimmer for roughly two hours.
Pawleys Island Police Department confirms the search for the missing swimmer resumed the morning around 8:30 a.m. The department released a statement on its Twitter page that it hopes to “bring some closure for the family.”
Battalion Chief Paramedic Carr Gilmore says a 15-year-old swimmer went under and his 16-year-old brother attempted to help, but the 16-year-old disappeared beneath the water. Gilmore says the 15-year-old made it back safely with help from rescue crews, but they have not found the other teen.
Rescue crews were in the water swimming and using water crafts in the search. Eggimen says they made the decision to call off the search shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday due to it being extremely dark and the water currents being high. Midway Fire Rescue, Pawley’s Island Police, and South Carolina DNR worked together in the search.
Gilmore says they believe rip currents could be what took the young man under water, and now all swimmers need to know what to look for when it comes to dangerous currents in the ocean.
“You’ll see a discoloration of water, and that’s where the water has created an area of least resistance and it’s just sweeping that water in there and it creates almost like a channel,” said Gilmore.
Gilmore says if you feel like you’re getting caught in a rip current, you should swim parallel to the shore until you no longer feel the strong current. Then, when you’re out, swim at an angle away from the line of the current until you reach the shore.
Police and beach patrols will continue to monitor and perform routine patrols of the area. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources will continue aerial searches throughout the week. Midway Fire and Pawley Island Police will help by conducting searches from the shore.
Crews were unable to continue boat searches Tuesday because of rough water but Georgetown County Sheriffs Beach and Marine Patrol Units continue to search the area Wednesday.
