Mill Race Park closed today; search continues for missing boy

June 16, 2018 John Clark

Photo courtesy of Indiana Department of Natural Resources.

Mill Race Park will be closed again today as rescue workers continue their search for a boy who disappeared into the river on Thursday.

6-year-old Brendan Sperry was playing Thursday afternoon on a sandbar in the river at Mill Race Park, where the Flat Rock and Driftwood River combine to form the East Fork White River.

The Columbus Police Department is reporting that searchers suspended their efforts last night after 15 hours in the water. Police stayed in the park overnight to keep the area closed and rescue workers will be restarting again this morning.

According to conservation officers with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, the primary search area has been checked exhaustively with sonar units and divers. However, the river conditions have been hampering the search.

Rescue workers have been searching from where Brendan entered the water to 300 yards downstream. They have used sonar, video, and divers. The divers have been working from the bank and from boats working off of a static line. A search of both banks covered more than half a mile.

However Due to the water level and the strength of the current, dive and sonar operations are being suspended until the water conditions improve. Rescue workers will will continue their surface search of the water and the river banks with boat patrols.

Conservation officers provides some statistics for Friday:

Boats on the water: 5, including 3 DNR boats, a Lawrence County hovercraft, and a Bartholomew County airboat.
Divers in the water: 8, including 4 DNR divers, 2 from ISP, and 2 from Bartholomew County.
Sonar/R.O.V. units utilized: 2 sonar units, 1 R.O.V. (all DNR)
Other search methods: Indiana State Police conducted an aerial search utilizing a helicopter. Indiana Department of Homeland Security checked the banks utilizing search dogs.

The Katie McBurnett 5k and 10k races, originally scheduled today for Mill Race Park, have moved to Noblitt Park. Registration starts at 8 a.m. and the race will begin at 9 a.m.