Florida Student Swept Away by River in Africa

GAINESVILLE, Fla., April 11, 2009 -- An intensive search effort is underway for an American student who was swept away while swimming in a river in southwest Africa.

Thad Owens, 27, went missing Thursday afternoon on the Kunene River, which borders Namibia and Angola, University of Florida spokesman Steve Orlando said Friday.

"They were at an area next to a river and he decided to go swimming," Orlando said. "He got swept down the river and they haven't seen him since."

The search effort includes local villagers, the Namibian police, the Namibian military, Angolan officials, private search and rescue teams and the U.S. embassy, according to a statement on the University of Florida's Wildlife Ecology and Conservation program Web site.

The University of Florida is in touch with Owens' family in Orlando, Fla., offering support, Orlando said.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with them," he said.

Owens, a senior, is one of nine students participating in a semester-long wildlife ecology and conservation study abroad program in Namibia. Orlando said the group has been in Africa since January.

As Owens' friends learned of his disappearance, they turned to Facebook, where notes of support began appearing on his Facebook page Friday afternoon. One post read, "Find your way man, hope for the best."

Another post read, "We all know you are the best equipped to get through this. ... Come back very, very soon, because this is going to be a story for the books."

Reached by Facebook, Owens' step-sister, Emily Johnston, said the family is grateful for people's kind words and would like to reassure Owens' friends and classmates that "the search is continuing apace."