First responders from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, Warren County Emergency Management, Barren County Rescue Squad, Richardsville Volunteer Fire Department and Bowling Green Fire and Police Departments search for a 17-year-old who went missing in Barren River while attempting to swim across the river a short distance upstream from the River Street bridge with two other juveniles on Friday afternoon, Sept. 20, 2024. Katie McKee, spokeswoman for the Bowling Green Fire Department, said that two members of the group noticed the boy struggling to swim across and turned back to help him, but were unsuccessful. The search is ongoing. (Grace Ramey McDowell/grace.ramey@bgdailynews.com)

The body of a 17-year-old boy who went missing Friday while swimming with friends in the Barren River was recovered Sunday afternoon.

Warren County Emergency Management posted shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday on its social media accounts that the person had been located.

“The combined effort of many first responders and agencies helped bring a part of closure this afternoon,” the post by county emergency management said in part, also extending condolences to the juvenile’s family.

Search efforts spanned parts of three days, concentrating on a stretch of river a short distance upstream from the River Street bridge.

First responders were called out to the river shortly before 4 p.m. Friday.

Katie McKee of the Bowling Green Fire Department said that the 17-year-old was attempting to swim from one side of the river to the other with two friends.

At one point, the friends turned around and noticed him struggling, and they tried to help him, but their efforts were unsuccessful, McKee said.

Search teams were on the river Friday afternoon, and resumed the search Saturday morning until it was suspended around 7 p.m. Saturday evening.

The search resumed on Sunday, resulting in the recovery of the body in the afternoon.

The county emergency management department said that the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, BGFD, Barren County Rescue Team, Hart County Rescue Team, Richardsville Volunteer Fire Department, Campbellsville Fire and Rescue, Hardin County Emergency Management, Hart County Emergency Management, Bowling Green Police Department and Bowling Green Municipal Utilities safety officials all contributed to the search effort.