“UPDATE: Conservation Officers search for missing quarry employee (Crawford County)“UPDATE: Conservation Officers search for missing quarry employee (Crawford County)
Indiana Conservation Officer divers along with Indiana State Police divers have recovered the body of the rock quarry employee missing since yesterday.
Shortly before noon, divers recovered the body in water between 20-30 feet deep with the help of a remote operated vehicle (ROV) submersible sonar unit.
Divers entered the inverted vehicle and extracted the body.
Identity is being withheld pending family notification. “
Staff report written from DNR press release
Crawford County, Indiana — September 13, 2023
Indiana Conservation Officers are intensifying efforts to locate a quarry employee who went missing after a dump truck he was operating plunged into a water-filled rock quarry pit on September 12, 2023.
The incident unfolded around 2 p.m. yesterday at the Mulzer Crushed Stone Inc. rock quarry, situated near the 20000 block of Alton Fredonia Road in the rural expanse of Crawford County.
According to preliminary reports, an employee of Mulzer Crushed Stone Inc. was operating a heavy-duty dump truck near the precipice of the quarry pit when the vehicle lost traction and tumbled over the edge, plummeting several hundred feet into the water below.
The initial search and rescue operation were met with challenges due to the rugged, unstable terrain surrounding the quarry pit. To facilitate access to the submerged dump truck, Mulzer employees constructed a makeshift path, allowing conservation officers to reach the water via a boat. Subsequent sonar imaging, conducted from the boat, confirmed the precise location of the truck submerged beneath the water’s surface.
Today, authorities are expected to deploy a remote-operated vehicle (ROV) submersible, equipped with cameras and sonar technology, to conduct a thorough assessment of the vehicle’s condition before authorizing divers to enter the water.
Assisting in the coordinated response efforts were several local agencies, including the Crawford County Sheriff’s Department, Crawford County Emergency Management Agency, Leavenworth Fire Department, and Indiana State Police.
