A 14 year old Rome City Schools student drowned at Little River Falls on Saturday.

According to Cherokee County Coroner Dr. Jeremy Deaton, at approximately 1:36 Saturday afternoon DeKalb County 911 received a call of a possible drowning in the vicinity of Martha’s Falls at Little River Canyon National Park. First responders from DeKalb Ambulance Service, DeKalb County Rescue Squad, US National Park Rangers, Fisher Rescue Team, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Water Patrol Division and Aviation division began searching for the subject who apparently went under the water but never resurfaced.

Dr. Deaton  has identified the victim as  14 year old Josue Andres Lopez of Rome. Lopez was recovered downstream from where the incident occurred at. His body was recovered using a Short Haul Recovery operation with the ALEA Aviation Unit. 

Dr. Deaton would like to express a sincere thank you to Shawn Rogers, Cherokee County EMA Director and Nattie Rodriguez with the Leesburg Fire Department for their assistance with this case.

Deaton states “Our office couldn’t have handled the case as efficiently and professionally without these two men’s involvement.”