SEARCY COUNTY (KFSM) — A Kansas man drowned in the Buffalo River upstream from the Highway 65 bridge Sunday afternoon (Aug. 16), according to a Buffalo National River press release.
Ravi Teja Reffy Yemalla, 25, from Overland Park, Kansas, fell into a deep underwater hole around 4 p.m., and disappeared from view, the release states. Yemalla’s friends said he did not know how to swim.
Bystanders, including his party and other nearby floaters, conducted a search for about 10 minutes before they located him, the release states.
After hearing the 911 dispatch and arriving on the scene, Buffalo National River Rangers unsuccessfully administer CPR for 45 minutes before North Arkansas College Paramedics took over. According to the release, they pronounced Yemalla unresponsive at the time.
