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Frustration Grows After Deckhand Remains Missing
The deckhand was last seen walking to the back of a tugboat for a cigarette Thursday night. The boat was on the river near marker 388.4, but his fellow crew members didn't notice Lindley was missing until Friday morning.
As the third day of searching came to a close, frustration grew.
Sgt. Tommy Cagle surveyed the shoreline.
"With an unknown location of where he went off the boat, all we can do is search the banks," said Cagle of the Alabama Marine Police.
Cagle started where Lindley was last seen. He looked for any signs of a body in the midst of floating logs and garbage.
"Most of the time, the only thing you are going to see is the back of their head," said Cagle.
Over the last three days, Alabama Marine Police, members of the U.S. Coastguard from Cullman and Tuscaloosa, and Tutwiler Fire and Rescue have searched the river. But they haven't been able to narrow down the search area.
Lindley went to the back of the tugboat for a cigarette Thursday night and his fellow crew members didn't notice his absence until several hours and eleven miles later.
"It's frustrating to come out here and spend all these hours and not get your mission completed," said Cagle.
The Walker County Red Cross was even at the boat launch trying to speed up the search.
"It helps them out if they don't have to go get something to eat and if they can just hop off the boat and grab a sandwich," said Tommy Davis, a Red Cross volunteer who helped provide police with food.
At the end of the third day, police passed Lindley's tugboat and realized they still had a lot of work ahead.
"If it were one of my family members, I'd want them located. Right now, I can't help the victim, but I can help the family," said Cagle.
If necessary, police plan on continuing their search through next week with a helicopter search on Monday and a search using a sonar next weekend.
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