CALDWELL COUNTY, N.C. — A 12-year-old boy from Charlotte drowned after going into Wilson Creek in Caldwell County Saturday, firefighters said.
First responders first got the call about 20 minutes after the boy was last seen going back to the family’s car. Firefighters say the family was camping in an area with a pool of water about 10-feet deep. The boy was later found downstream.
During the summer months, thousands of people come to Wilson Creek to swim, fish and kayak. There are warning signs along the creek and several sirens that go off if the water begins rising there.
Firefighters told Channel 9’s Dave Faherty they’ve responded to five rescues along the creek so far this year.
In some areas, the water is only ankle- to knee-deep, but there are drop offs where the water is much deeper. Caldwell Emergency Services says there are also rocks, submerged limbs and fallen trees that can create powerful, unpredictable undertows.
Faherty spoke with longtime visitors to the area about the creek’s hidden dangers.
“It can be dangerous. It’s a lot of rapids and stuff,” a man who was fishing at the creek Monday morning said. “If you ain’t a strong swimmer, I wouldn’t be swimming in it.”
There were storms across the foothills Saturday afternoon, but firefighters said they did not impact the water levels at Wilson Creek.