Water Patrol suspends search for missing men

Smith and Barton were last heard from on July 30

By CHRIS CLINE
Daily Journal Staff Writer

STE. GENEVIEVE — Two Farmington men whose boat capsized on the Mississippi River last week are still missing and the search has been suspended. Despite an extensive search conducted by the Missouri State Water Patrol along with various other law enforcement and emergency personnel over the weekend, no new clues have been uncovered into the whereabouts of Harold Smith, 52, Farmington, and Arthur Barton, 46, Farmington.

According to a public relations representative with the Missouri State Water Patrol, the physical search for the two men was suspended earlier this week due to a lack of manpower.

According to the Missouri State Water Patrol, Smith and Barton were last heard from at approximately 3 p.m. July 30 when their boat ran out of gas and was drifting down the river.

A family member was waiting for the two men at the ferry crossing with some fuel. When the boat arrived at the crossing, it was floating upside down. The boat was later found two miles down river in a tree line. The official Missouri State Water Patrol report lists the two men as presumed drowned.

Missouri State Water Patrolman Dave Nelson assisted in the search throughout the weekend. On Friday he said he was still optimistic that the two men would be found alive, but he also admitted that as time passed it became more unlikely that they survived.

He said the men’s boat was heavily damaged when it was found the day before. He also said it isn’t known how the boat was damaged or if the two men were inside it when the damage occurred.

The search over the weekend was concentrated to an area known as the 135-mile marker, just below Rush Island, down to the Chester and Perryville Bridge.

Nelson said the Coast Guard alerted all barges and tow boats that might be in the area or that are down river to be on the lookout for the two men.

Chris Cline is a reporter for the Daily Journal. Contact him at 573-431-2010, ext. 114 or at ccline@dailyjournalonline.com.

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