MCINTOSH COUNTY, Ga. -- A weekend hunting trip turns tragic after a McIntosh County teenager is separated from his stepfather and goes missing.
Searchers spent most of Monday combing the woods in McIntosh County for 15 year-old Daniel Gale. The teen and his stepfather had gone scouting for hunting spots sunday afternoon, when their GPS lost power.
"They got disoriented and turned around, got cold and wet. Mr. Gale was able to come out but Daniel was not," said McIntosh County Sheriff Stephen Jessup.
A half a dozen agencies and about 50 people were involved in the search.
Brian Gale managed to make his way to a nearby home around 6:15 a.m. Monday. Daniel's mother Susan said her husband left the boy so he could go get help.
"He put Daniel on a hill, with a gun for protection, said he'd be back in about 20 minutes. He really thought he was about 20 minutes away from getting help," she said. She said her son and husband left around 1:00 p.m. Sunday.
Around 2:30 p.m. Monday, a Georgia State Patrol helicopter spotted Daniel Gale's body about 3 miles off Cox Road, in the area of Possum Point Road. Sheriff Jessup said they believe Daniel Gale died from hypothermia or possibly drowning, since he was found in shallow water in the woods.
His mother sobbed as authorities told her of the discovery.
"Family is just totally distraught as anyone would be if you lost one of your children. We give prayer and sympathy to them and we're going to help them get through this," said Sheriff Jessup.
Searchers were finally able to recover Daniel Gale's body from the woods around 7:00 p.m.
Authorities said the woods can be treacherous and getting lost is easy if you're not careful.
"If you're not familiar with the terrain and it gets dark, you get tired. You get cold. Hypothermia kicks in. Your mind doesn't operate in the way it should operate sometimes. You may not make the right decision," said Jessup.
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