John Vanlandingham

TILTON, Ga. — Dragging the murky green water of the Conasauga River on Tuesday failed to yield evidence of a missing Whitfield County boater.

Authorities and community volunteers have combed the riverbanks, the woods and fields around Riverbend Road and Tilton Bridge Road since Thursday night looking for Brett Andrew Thomason, 19.

Two friends reported he had dropped them off and kept paddling downriver in a flat-bottomed boat.

Officers with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources on Tuesday used two boats to drag the water several hundred yards upstream and about one mile south of where searchers found the Mr. Thomason’s boat on shore. A third DNR boat crew searched along the water’s surface and the riverbank on a 12-mile stretch of water.

The boats deployed used 3- to 4-foot-wide dragging rods equipped with five to seven hooks designed to snag on clothing. Some searchers used 12-foot poles to probe under banks.

Sgt. John Vanlandingham with the DNR’s law enforcement division said searchers also used “ side sonar” to try to find anything below the surface.

STAFF PHOTO BY KEVIN CUMMINGS Cpl. James Keener operates the boat as Cpl. Casey Jones drags the Conasauga River on Tuesday to try and find the body of Brett Thomason.

“The water level has dropped about 3 feet since he went missing and so now we’re getting a much clearer picture,” Mr. Vanlandingham said. “Dragging’s not 100 percent effective. When you drag you get a lot of brush and stuff catching.”

On the first day of the search, officials found wet clothes in a bag near Mr. Thomason’s boat. In a nearby field, they found a wooden oar and footprints that may have been Mr. Thomason’s.

Friends and family on Tuesday waited for word at Riverbend Baptist Church.

Mr. Thomason’s father, Tim, and stepmother, Stephanie, watched the dragging operation until officials asked them to leave.

Both said they are baffled about what happened to Brett.

“This pretty strange, ain’t it?” Tim Thomason said.

Mr. Thomason is a 2008 graduate of Southeast Whitfield High School and is scheduled to report to Marine boot camp in April.

The Conasauga River averages between 4 feet and 6 feet deep closer to the banks but at some points it drops to 15 feet to 18 feet in depth, Mr. Vanlandingham said.

Authorities were particularly concentrating on areas of the river where search dogs showed an interest over the weekend.

“Of course, dogs can show interest in a lot of different things,” Mr. Vanlandingham noted.

He said the river search will be scaled back a little more with each passing day.