Sheriff continues search for Anglin’s remains
The search for the remains of Jimmy Anglin in an abandoned, water-filled quarry was expected to resume on Wednesday, when officials were to have the necessary equipment on hand.
Anglin, a 27-year-old Oglethorpe County resident, went missing in November of 2017. Robert David Jordan, Anglin’s cousin, was found guilty of murdering Anglin last month.
Working from a tip, law enforcement officials focused their search for Anglin’s remains to the quarry near 111 Rocky Drive in the northeast part of the county.
They plan to pump the water from the bottom of the quarry, and once complete, the search will be conducted by six to 10 Oglethorpe County firefighters and deputies. They will search up to 10 feet of sediment from the bottom of the quarry in an attempt to find Anglin's remains. Gabriel anticipates that this search will happen on Friday, when the quarry is expected to be drained of water.
Officials initially used a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) to search the water on April 21, but sediment made visibility low and “nothing particularly interesting was found,” Oglethorpe County Sheriff David Gabriel said.
Law enforcement officials then decided to pump the water out of the quarry for a more intensive search, which began on April 22.
This is the first time the quarry, owned by 3Star Holdings LLC, has been drained in approximately 20 years, Gabriel said.
Last weekend, officials realized that the pump, which weighs 4,000 pounds and drains 2,300 gallons per minute, and the crane, were insufficient for the project.
They stopped until other equipment could be brought in to place the pump.
The crane, from Southern Crane & Mechanical Services, was unable to properly place the pump on a lower shelf of the quarry because the distance from crane to the quarry’s edge did not meet safety regulations, Gabriel said.
After a Southern Crane representative inspected the site and said the crane did not meet safety protocol, officials obtained an alternative crane from Elberton to meet the safety requirements.
Crane access is critical to the project in order to both place the pump and to put personnel on the bottom of the drained quarry to conduct the search, Gabriel said.
The need for alternative pumping equipment also contributed to putting the project on pause.
The Elberton Granite Association and The Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA) assisted Oglethorpe County in obtaining a submersible pump with a three-phase generator that the crane will be able to place, in addition to a suction hose for the project.
The cost of the pump is covered by the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA) and the personnel for conducting the search and operations comes at no additional cost for taxpayers, Gabriel said.
Among those involved in the project include Gabriel, Jason Lewis (Oglethorpe County EMS director), Chuck Almond (Elbert County EMS director) and Ranger Phillip Nelson (Georgia Department of Natural Resources).