West Branch of the AuSable River looking toward the Flume, downstream of the state Route 86 bridge (News photo — Andy Flynn)

WILMINGTON — As of press time on Wednesday, Oct. 5, New York State Police said a 68-year-old man who fell into the West Branch of the AuSable River near the Flume on Thursday, Sept. 30 was still considered missing.

New York State Forest Rangers were on the scene daily looking for George M. Thevis, of Atlanta, Georgia, according to Trooper Brandi Ashley, the public information officer at Troop B, based in Ray Brook.

Plus, the State Police Underwater Recovery Team had laid out a net in the waterway and State Police were checking in with searchers regularly.

Around 6:29 p.m. Sept. 29, State Police troopers responded to a call behind the Hungry Trout Resort on state Route 86.

Thevis was attempting to help a friend get up from the ground after falling, and he lost his balance, slipped and fell off the edge of an embankment about 25 feet down into the river, Ashley said.

On Friday, Sept. 30, New York State Police Sgt. Brian Russell, left, and Trooper Chad Trombley stand guard at the Flume Trails trailhead off state Route 86 in the town of Wilmington as the search for a 68-year-old Georgia man, who had fallen into the West Branch of the AuSable River the night before, continued. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

In addition to Forest Rangers, troopers and the URT, the search in the Flume area downstream of the Hungry Trout Resort included help from State Police aviation, the Essex County Sheriff’s Department, and fire and rescue volunteers from Wilmington and Upper Jay. Ashley said on Monday that the search was also getting K-9 and drone assistance.

State police on Sept. 30 issued a press release asking for the public’s help in locating Thevis. Anyone with information about this incident is being asked to call State Police in Ray Brook at 518-563-3761.

The investigation is ongoing.

The search is centered around the Flume, which has in past years been the site of searches for swimmers who had drowned; it is a popular swimming hole in the summer for residents and visitors.

Hungry Trout Resort, Wilmington (News photo — Andy Flynn)