Atlanta, GA
Divers, dogs amp up search for missing Atlanta teacher on Lake Oconee
PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. – The Putnam County Sheriff’s Office launched its largest search effort yet at Lake Oconee on Saturday in an attempt to locate Gary Jones. The Atlanta teacher has been missing since Feb. 8.
What we know:
Jones was last seen on the lake with his fiancée, Joycelyn Wilson, in a small fishing boat. Her body was discovered on Feb. 9, but Jones remains missing.
The search operation included eight divers and several cadaver dog teams from Florida and Georgia, working alongside Putnam County sheriff’s deputies and a Department of Natural Resources helicopter.
The search teams also utilized sonar to investigate. Despite conducting 11 dives on nine identified targets, they found no traces of Jones anywhere.
Gary Jones (Credit: Westminster Athletics)
Conditions worsen during search for Gary Jones
What they’re saying:
“Today was the biggest effort we put forth yet, really, as far as number of people,” said Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills. “I’ve been a police officer of some sort for over 50 years, and this is the biggest effort I’ve ever seen on a drowning case like this to recover a body. We’ve got people here from South Carolina, from Georgia, from Florida.”
Buck Buchanan of Dive 9-1-1 said murky lake waters offered less than a foot of visibility.
“We have almost less than a foot of visibility. So if you put your hand out in front of you, squint real hard in a dark closet,” Buchanan explained.
High winds, with gusts reaching up to 30 miles per hour, also further complicated the search.
“They said we’ve had like 30 miles an hour gusts. It looks like we’ve got about 25 miles an hour sustained right now. So, it’s become kind of impossible for the dogs to work,” Sills noted.
Laurence Walker of the United Cajun Navy described how the winds created swells up to two feet high, affecting the accuracy of sonar equipment.
“The waves bouncing up and down. It makes the sonar not that accurate, too, because it’s just like holding the camera, like trying to take a picture. With the camera jumping up and down so you get blurred images,” Walker said.
Gary Jones’ students reach out
What we know:
Earlier this week, some of Jones’ students sent thank-you cards to the search and rescue teams. Walker expressed how these gestures of gratitude motivate the volunteers.
“I got three of them, and I read one, and it took me a couple of days to read the second. And that’s the reason I’m here, man,” he said.
What’s next:
The search teams plan to resume their efforts at 7 a.m. Sunday, hoping for calmer winds and potentially more divers joining the search.
Search efforts continue at Lake Oconee for Gary Jones on March 1, 2025.
What happened to Gary Jones?
The backstory:
Gary Jones and his fiancée, Joycelyn Wilson, were celebrating his 50th birthday when they vanished.
The couple had checked into a hotel near Lake Oconee before heading straight to the water.
Approximately two hours later, boaters discovered their empty fishing boat idling on the lake, setting off a widespread search operation.
Authorities are treating this as a death investigation as they work to determine what happened.
Wilson’s body was found dead in the water on Feb. 9, near where Jones’ shoes and personal belongings were recovered.
The Source: FOX 5 Atlanta reporter Eric Mock interviewed the search teams helping look for missing teacher Gary Jones at Lake Oconee on March 1, 2025.Information for this story came from the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, Dive 911 and the United Cajun Navy along with previous reports from Fox 5 Atlanta.
Atlanta, GA
The Best Vintage Shops in Atlanta
Vogue’s guide to the best vintage stores in Atlanta is part of our directory of the very best vintage around the world, curated by editors from all over. Whether you’re traveling and searching for some superb stores to visit on your trip or are curious about your local vintage treasure chests, Vogue’s directory has you covered.
Come to Atlanta for its southern charm and lush greenery, stay for its vintage. The Hollywood of the South has a lot more than on-set locations and an upcoming roster of FIFA World Cup games, and whether exploring shops along the Beltline, losing your voice at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, or itching for the eccentric pleasures of a roadside antique mall, these vintage gems make the journey to the A more than worth it.
Photo: Courtesy of The Clothing Warehouse
Dutch field pants, netted shirts, prairie dresses, and a floor-to-ceiling selection of cowboy boots are a few of the many goods awaiting your search at this Atlanta mainstay. Opened by Jim Buckley in 1992, the Clothing Warehouse now calls the hipster Little 5 Points home. Its redbrick exterior is hard to miss—head upstairs for womenswear and union-made dresses, then downstairs to a room of seriously color-coded tees—it’s likely you will find plenty of Atlanta history in the form of 1996 Summer Olympics shirts. Plus, its wholesale location is a 15-minute drive away in West Midtown, if you’re up for an afternoon dig.
Address: 420 Moreland Ave NE, Atlanta
At the vintage and makers market Mother Lode, there’s something for every lover of old things. Founder Lindsay Short’s estate sale background is well-reflected in the shop’s range of garments, decor, and wares. Find 1930s beach pajamas beside bowling shirts and Edwardian tunics at Fellows Vintage’s booth, or ’60s wedding dresses that seem more Factory Girl than bride-to-be from Iron Pony. The hunt continues at Mother Lode’s sister location in college town Athens, which opened in 2023.
Address: 3429 Covington Hwy Ste B, Decatur
Monet Brewerton-Palmer first got her love for bridal from her grandmother, who was a shop seamstress. Then, after shopping for her own wedding dress in 2014 and ending up with four, her interest (and personal collection) only grew. Now, Brewerton-Palmer offers brides an array of dresses by Vera Wang, Oscar de la Renta, Catherine Rayner, and more. Standout pieces include a 1959 one-of-one from Jacques Heim, a silk rose-covered Christian Dior for the romantic, and a fur-accented Muriel Martin for the nontraditionalist.
Atlanta, GA
Former Atlanta principal back at his old school as its new handyman:
Retirement did not last long for one Atlanta school principal.
After 10 years leading Burgess Peterson Academy, David White is back, and this time he’s making sure everything inside the school’s building runs smoothly.
White retired last September from being the school’s principal, but home didn’t suit him for long.
“I found myself really kind of lonely and disconnected,” White said. “I had lost my sense of community, for sure, so when this position became available, I kind of laughed because I used to say that it would be the perfect retirement job.”
White applied for the open site manager position and got the job. Now he enjoys being back in the same halls that bring him joy.
He is six weeks into the new job.
“I find myself now always looking to see if there are lights that are burned out, if there are issues that need to be addressed,” said White. “There’s always the need for touch-up painting, right? Because kids have dirty little hands, and they love to pick paint.”
During CBS News Atlanta’s visit, White was repairing a broken lightbulb in the boy’s bathroom.
“The light started flickering, like, just blinking off and on, and so of course the kids were saying it was haunted,” he said.
Around the school, his impact hasn’t faded.
Students and staff light up when they see him.
“It’s been really great to see their excitement to be here every day and to see Mr. White,” said principal Dr. Holly Brookins. “I really feel that having him back has added so much value to our community, and it’s really been a joyful thing for all of us.”
With a tool belt and new titles, White proves that no matter the role, some people never stop showing up for the places they love.
Atlanta, GA
APS bus struck by stray bullet in southwest Atlanta; 2 children injured, police say
A shooting in southwest Atlanta on Wednesday afternoon left a young man injured and sent glass flying inside an Atlanta Public Schools bus carrying children.
Atlanta Police say officers responded around 3:10 p.m. to a report of a person shot in the 2600 block of Campbellton Road SW.
When officers arrived, they found a 20-year-old man with an apparent gunshot wound. He was alert, conscious, and breathing when he was transported to the hospital.
As investigators began piecing together what happened, they discovered the violence had extended beyond the initial shooting scene.
Police say an Atlanta Public Schools bus was struck by a stray bullet during the incident, shattering one of its windows.
At the time, only the driver and two students were on board.
The children suffered minor scratches from the broken glass, according to police. The bus driver was not injured.
No further details have been released about the condition of the shooting victim or what led to the gunfire.
Atlanta Police say investigators with the Aggravated Assault Unit are working to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
The investigation remains ongoing.
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