Vehicle, missing man found in Turkey River

UPDATE: The decedent has been identified as James Halverson 74 of Elkader. 

At approximately 3:20 a.m. on Sunday, April 21, the Clayton County Sheriff’s Department took a report of an elderly man who had been missing. 

Tire marks were discovered going into the ditch and then into the Turkey River near 10-Mile Bridge on Chariot Road. 

Deputies arrived and confirmed that a vehicle had gone into the Turkey River. 

A search plan was organized, and emergency personnel waited for daylight hours to start the search efforts. 

At 6:45 a.m. the vehicle was discovered in the Turkey River, approximately 250 yards downriver from the accident scene. 

Emergency personnel recovered the vehicle and the missing man from the river. 

The man’s identity is being withheld until all family members have been notified. 

The Clayton County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Elgin, Elkader and St. Olaf fire departments and the Department of Natural Resources.