A Pottersville man drowned after his vehicle was swept off of the Warren Bridge in flood waters, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Brian O. Richardson, 50, was pronounced dead at 8 a.m. Saturday, about five days after the search for him began, reported Cpl. J.R. Roberts with Troop G of the patrol.
The incident happened at 11:57 p.m. April 29, when Richardson exited his vehicle, went under the surface of the water and didn't resurface, said Roberts.
Warren Bridge crosses Bryant Creek on Ozark County Road 328, about 10 miles north of Tecumseh.
According to a statement from the Ozark County Sheriff’s office made to social media on April 30, emergency services responded to a call from a woman shortly after midnight April that day, reporting her boyfriend’s vehicle had been swept off the bridge by fast-moving waters. Despite challenges wrought by heavy rainfall leading to rapid water and substantial debris, responders found the missing vehicle at 7:30 a.m., about 100 feet downstream from the bridge, the sheriff’s office reported. It was pulled from the river at about 1 p.m., with no one inside.
Richardson’s body was found Saturday morning, at which time he was formally pronounced dead by Ozark County Coroner Gene Britt. Roberts was assisted at the scene by Msgt. B.D. Foster and Cpl. C.P. Chatman.
Responding to the initial call and working with the Ozark County Sheriffs Office to conduct the search were volunteer firefighters from Dora, Caney Mountain, and Tecumseh; Ozark County Ambulance; and the patrol.
