Hartwell Dam Operations Cease As Search For Missing Boater Continues

Still no sign of a missing boater on Lake Hartwell and now the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has shut down operations at Hartwell Dam as dive crews and other rescue teams from South Carolina and Georgia continue their search.

Corps spokesman Billy Birdwell says all operations at the dam have stopped for the time being.

“Officials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continue to cooperate in the search for the victim of the July 15 incident,” Birdwell said. “However, due to the proximity of the search area to the dam, Anderson County has requested that we not generate, if possible. We have coordinated the ‘no generate’ request with the Southeastern Power Administration each day of the search, and so far, we’ve been able to approve the ‘no generation’ and that includes today.”

Anderson County Sheriff Chad McBride requested the measure because of wide search area.

A command post has been set up at the Singing Pines Recreation Area on the South Carolina side of the lake, but Birdwell say all other recreation areas and campsites on Hartwell Lake are open.

“Now, this will have limited impact with the public use areas. The only impact is to the Singing Pines Recreation area, which remains closed so Anderson County could set up a command post. Not sure how long the search will go on, but the ‘no generation’ will go on a day-to-day basis for as long as we can sustain this,” he said.

Officials say Kip and Stacy Burrell of Seneca were boating on the lake Saturday when they got caught in a sudden storm.

Strong winds caused their boat to overturn throwing them into the water.

Stacy Burrell told authorities she and her husband tried to swim to shore but got tired.

A passing boater spotted Stacy in the water and got her safely to shore, but her husband remains missing.

Georgia DNR has been assisting South Carolina DNR in the search for Burrell since the weekend, along with search and rescue/recovery teams from surrounding counties.

DNR Law Enforcement officer Craig Fulghum tells WLHR News dive teams are facing a number of problems, including the 150 to 180-foot depth of the lake where the search is taking place.

He said divers are only able to stay that far down for a few minutes at a time.

Meantime, Sheriff McBride has not indicated how long they will continue the search.