Not good news, lets hope he still has a chance to be found...
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/01/10/2462995.htm?section=justin
'A real likelihood' missing solider drowned
The soldier went missing yesterday afternoon. (AAP: Peter Dombrovskis)
Map: Strahan 7468
Related Story: Fate looks grim for missing rafter, expert says
Tasmanian police believe an Indian soldier missing in the state's rugged south-west has drowned.
The 23-year-old man was part of a joint Indian-Australian defence force expedition rafting down the Franklin River.
He went missing yesterday afternoon.
Inspector Brian Edmonds says a ground, air and kayaking search is continuing, but eyewitness accounts have given police little hope of finding the man alive.
"It is now reported to us that the Indian man was seen to fall whilst trying to get ashore at a portage around a rapid called the Cauldron," he said.
"The man was seen to enter the water but not resurface below the rapid. That leads us to the conclusion that potentially drowning is a real likelihood."
Members of the group are also helping with the search.
Earlier, Graham Mitchell from Rafting Tasmania says it is a well-known rapid where another rafter died in 1985.
"The Cauldron, where this man's gone missing, is a jumble of large boulders - serious bus-sized boulders - just jumbling up the river," he said.
It could be weeks before the soldier's body can be retrieved.
Inspector Edmonds says attempts to retrieve his body from the dangerous waters will have to wait until the river level drops.
"Look it certainly will depend on the area that the man is trapped in," he said.
"If it indeed is a few metres below the surface of the river, it could take some days and potentially weeks."
He says the surviving members of the rafting trip are believed to be holding up well.
"I have spoken to the leader of the expedition. They're holding up reasonably well and the army are assisting police with the ongoing search," he said.
"But it certainly is a shock to not only his fellow party members, but police and the ADF generally."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/01/10/2462995.htm?section=justin
'A real likelihood' missing solider drowned
The soldier went missing yesterday afternoon. (AAP: Peter Dombrovskis)
Map: Strahan 7468
Related Story: Fate looks grim for missing rafter, expert says
Tasmanian police believe an Indian soldier missing in the state's rugged south-west has drowned.
The 23-year-old man was part of a joint Indian-Australian defence force expedition rafting down the Franklin River.
He went missing yesterday afternoon.
Inspector Brian Edmonds says a ground, air and kayaking search is continuing, but eyewitness accounts have given police little hope of finding the man alive.
"It is now reported to us that the Indian man was seen to fall whilst trying to get ashore at a portage around a rapid called the Cauldron," he said.
"The man was seen to enter the water but not resurface below the rapid. That leads us to the conclusion that potentially drowning is a real likelihood."
Members of the group are also helping with the search.
Earlier, Graham Mitchell from Rafting Tasmania says it is a well-known rapid where another rafter died in 1985.
"The Cauldron, where this man's gone missing, is a jumble of large boulders - serious bus-sized boulders - just jumbling up the river," he said.
It could be weeks before the soldier's body can be retrieved.
Inspector Edmonds says attempts to retrieve his body from the dangerous waters will have to wait until the river level drops.
"Look it certainly will depend on the area that the man is trapped in," he said.
"If it indeed is a few metres below the surface of the river, it could take some days and potentially weeks."
He says the surviving members of the rafting trip are believed to be holding up well.
"I have spoken to the leader of the expedition. They're holding up reasonably well and the army are assisting police with the ongoing search," he said.
"But it certainly is a shock to not only his fellow party members, but police and the ADF generally."
