Two men from North Georgia drowned in separate weekend incidents off Panama City Beach, police said.
Eugene Spann, 67, of Atlanta, was declared dead after being pulled from the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday morning, authorities said.
The body of Tony Jackson, 21, of Cartersville, was found Sunday afternoon about two hours after he was caught by a large wave, according to police.
Police and emergency workers took over life support efforts from bystanders when they found Spann unresponsive on the beach behind a motel shortly after 11 a.m. He was taken to an emergency room on the beach, where he was pronounced dead.
A search effort involving several agencies eventually found Jackson’s body. Police originally responded to a call about a swimmer in distress about 2:30 p.m.
Police said surf flags were at the red “high hazard” level when Jackson drowned. That was up from the yellow “medium hazard” designation at the time of Spann’s death.
Jackson's family has launched an effort on GoFundMe to raise money to bring his body back to Georgia and for funeral expenses.
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