A local man has drowned following a hunting trip Thursday morning in Nassau County.
Just after 2:30 a.m., deputies were called out to the Crawford Hunting Camp located at 24609 Crawford Road in Callahan in reference to a missing person report.
Authorities said two Jacksonville men, Wade Alfred Price, 46 and Troy James Dinkins, 45, were running their hunting dogs after wild hogs in the hunting camp area.
Once they were done hunting and going through the woods, the men decided to wash off mud they were covered in and jumped in a large half-acre pond. NCSO said the pond was about 10 feet deep.
Price told deputies he got out of the pond for about 10 minutes to get dressed in dry clothing. When he returned to the pond, Dinkins was nowhere to be found.
Price called police after unsuccessfully locating Dinkins.
After an extensive search by NCSO deputies with K-9’s, and NCSO’s dive team, Dinkins was found at the bottom of the pond.