Area emergency officials believe they may have located a submerged vehicle near where the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo rivers converge.
This afternoon dive teams from Allegan, Calhoun, and Van Buren counties, along with the Emmett and Bedford Township fire departments, continued the vehicle search with a large dive magnet.
Dropping the magnet from Emmett's rescue boat, the team dragged it through the area of a 15- to 20-foot hole near the rivers' convergence, where they believe the vehicle to be.
The magnet struck what they suspect is the vehicle. The team marked it with a buoy and, starting tomorrow, will work with area towing companies and emergency agencies to determine how best to remove the vehicle from the river, without using divers.
Calhoun County's dive team and the Battle Creek Fire and Police departments worked more than 12 hours Saturday to attempt to locate the vehicle, believed to be a small, Hyundai SUV. Due to a current estimated at more than 10 mph at the rivers' convergence, the team determined it was unsafe to continue diving today.
The vehicle is believed to have entered the river around 4:30 am Saturday, on Dickman Road, east of Capital Avenue. Video footage showed a vehicle floating backward from there. Saturday, crews near the convergence area found the bumper that identified the type of vehicle.
It's unknown that this time why the vehicle entered the river. Officials expect this will be a recovery effort.