Search For Sunken Car By Boat Called Off Until River Calms Down; Air Crews Expected To Work Thursday

Area crews searching a stretch of the Kalamazoo River by boat for a sunken car have called off the search for now, citing dangerous conditions.

The city says that three boats spent four hours on the Kalamazoo River Tuesday, searching between where the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek Rivers meet all the way to the Custer Dr. bridge. It was the fourth day of searching for the Hyundai that’s believed to have entered the river Saturday morning. However, the search is now on hold, due to high water levels and a swift current; the plan is, once the water is calmer, dive teams will search deep areas of the river that currently can’t be properly checked.

The search will continue, however, in the air; The Michigan Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, part of the Air Force Auxillary, plans to sweep the river as far west as possible Thursday. Emergency crews think that it’s possible the submerged car moved with the current for several miles.

A 31-year-old Detroit man with ties to Battle Creek is believed to have been the driver of the Hyundai. He was reported missing Sunday, and data shows that his cell phone was used in the area of Dickman and Capital Ave, where the car is believed to have entered the river.

Authorities say that they are treating this as a recovery operation, not a rescue.

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