Cajun Navy leader warns Nolan Wells' search area has deadly 'washing machine' currents: 'Lots of drownings' - Fox News

What the report says

Fox News reports that United Cajun Navy Vice President Brian Trascher, who assisted in the search for 18-year-old Nolan Xavier Wells, said the waters near Horn Island off Mississippi’s Gulf Coast are locally known as the “washing machine” because of dangerous rip currents and past drownings. Wells disappeared on July 4 after a boating trip with friends to the barrier island, and a National Park Service ranger found his remains on the island’s northwestern tip on July 6 after search crews looked through the area.

According to the report, Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter has said investigators believe Wells chose to remain on Horn Island after his friends returned to the mainland. Authorities previously told the Associated Press that foul play was not suspected. Trascher told Fox News Digital that people present on the island described the rip current that day as very strong, and he said the water near the island’s northwest point can shift quickly from shallow to deep.

Trascher also said questions remain about the period after Wells was last seen, reportedly around 4 or 4:30 p.m. on July 4, and before his body was found two days later. He said he was not alleging foul play but believed investigators still needed to account for that gap.

Fox News also reported that attorney Ben Crump said an independent autopsy noted an area of red discoloration on Wells’ head, while Dr. Roger Mitchell could not determine a cause or manner of death pending further investigation. Forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden told Fox News the injury described could be minor and not necessarily evidence of foul play. An official autopsy had not been completed, according to the report.