Body of missing swimmer found

Law enforcement agencies have confirmed divers and search teams have recovered the body of a drowning victim at Singing Pines Recreation Area on Lake Hartwell. The body was recovered Tuesday.

According to officials, the victim is 24-year-old Juber Lemus. Lemus was at the recreation area with friends when he went for a swim. Lemus went underwater and never resurfaced.

According to Ryan Herring with Anderson Technical Rescue, a call of a possible drowning at Singing Pines recreation area in Starr, South Carolina was received on Monday around 8:45 p.m.

Herring says the Williford Fire Department was the first to arrive on the scene.

Witnesses said Lemus was swimming in the lake with friends before he went missing and had not been accounted for.

Initially, three rescue divers searched the area but could not find the man. As of midnight, there were 12 divers on the scene, including six with Anderson County and six with Hart County.

Search operations continued through the night and into Tuesday morning.

Anderson Technical Rescue, Hart County Dive Team, Hart County Emergency Management, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, Anderson County Emergency Management, and S.C. Department of Natural Resources are helping in the operation.

Crews have also been used sonar to search for the man.

Anderson County Emergency Management says divers from Abbeville and Oconee counties were brought in to assist in the search Tuesday morning.