#BREAKING authorities locate body of missing swimmer in VFW Lake in Buchanan (8:00am Monday, 07/23/18). 46-year old Christopher Prather had been missing since going for a swim Saturday evening.

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The VFW Lake (AKA Sea Breeze Lake) in Buchanan remains closed Monday as local and state authorities continue their search for a man who witnesses say on Saturday jumped into the water but did not re-surface.

“Approximately 6:00pm, he was on a boat… some people were in the boat with him… and the boat was disabled,” Buchanan Police Chief Chad Henderson told WLBB Radio. “He decides to jump into the water… to cool off.”

But, according to investigators, witnesses say they never saw him emerge from the water.

The missing male has been identified as 46-year old Christopher Prather. He resides in west Georgia.

A state dive team along with the DNR and authorities from Haralson, Carroll and Douglas counties, searched the lake Saturday evening and Sunday, but found no sign of Prather.

Haralson County Arson Investigator Dave Wade says crews are back out Monday to search for the missing man.

“The lake has been scanned three or four times. We used side-scan sonar and the DNR brought their pontoon they keep in Lake Lanier… which has a tripod system which drops down in the water. It takes a 360-degree view of the area for 75 feet in a circle,” Wade told WLBB Radio. “Nothing has surfaced yet as far as any helpful images. The scene is still secure. We still have law enforcement present on the scene and we will maintain that security for the next couple of days, for sure.”

Officials estimate the depth of the lake to be between 7 and 14 feet.