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Diver finds lost GoPro in lake with the shocking final moments of man who drowned

Home> News> US News

Updated 16:54 29 Jul 2024 GMT+1Published 16:50 29 Jul 2024 GMT+1

Diver finds lost GoPro in lake with the shocking final moments of man who drowned

A diver made an unbelievable discovery that was able to put the minds of grieving parents at ease

Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard Kaonga

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A diver made an unexpected discovery that helped explain the final moments of a man who died years earlier.

Back in 2017, a 22 year-old drowned in a waterfall just before his 23rd birthday.

The victim was identified as Richard Ragland and following his passing, his family had been searching for closure.

He'd been with friends at Foster Falls State Park in Tennessee, US, when the fateful incident occurred.

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The young man had gone swimming underneath the waterfall but never resurfaced.

Richard Ragland died at the age of 22 in 2017. (WSB-TV)
Richard Ragland died at the age of 22 in 2017. (WSB-TV)

Richard's mother, Robin McCrear, was left with questions about her son's final moments.

However, she wasn't able to get the answers she needed until the discovery of his GoPro.

Park rangers attempted to send Robin a thumb drive containing footage of Richard before his death but it seemed to have been stolen in transit.

"We miss him dearly with all of our hearts," Robin told WSB-TV at the time.

"He was an amazing young man. Full of love, full of energy."

Miraculously, two years after Richard's death, YouTuber and treasure hunter Rich Aloha (real name Rich Abernathy) found the 22-year-old's GoPro.

Rich had been searching the waterfall where Richard died and came across the camera.

He then asked park rangers about it and they explained about Richard's death in 2017.

As well as the camera itself, Richard's SD card was still inside with footage leading up to his final moments.

"I strongly believe that God led me to this GoPro because the only thing I saw was the end tip of the thumbscrew and everything else was just covered in muck," the YouTuber told WSB-TV in 2019.

Rich Aloha pictured with Richard Ragland's mom and stepdad. (WSB-TV)
Rich Aloha pictured with Richard Ragland's mom and stepdad. (WSB-TV)

When he watched the footage and realized it was Richard, he took it upon himself to try reach out to Richard's parents.

Rich spent hours online until finally coming across Robin's phone number and called her to say he wanted to return the camera and card to her.

As to what the footage contained, the bereaved mother said it was of 'Rich being Rich, living life to the fullest'.

She went on to say that that the efforts Rich went to to contact them 'means the world to us'.

Elsewhere, Rich added to The New York Times: "It means so much that I could bring something totally invaluable and priceless to them."

To date, Rich's 2019 video of the moment he discovered Richard's GoPro has amassed 81,000 views on YouTube.

In the comments section of the clip, Rich was widely praised for getting in touch with Richard's parents to give them the footage.

Featured Image Credit: WSB-TV

Topics: News, US News, YouTube

Gerrard Kaonga
Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard is a Journalist at UNILAD and has dived headfirst into covering everything from breaking global stories to trending entertainment news. He has a bachelors in English Literature from Brunel University and has written across a number of different national and international publications. Most notably the Financial Times, Daily Express, Evening Standard and Newsweek.

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