{"id":17234,"date":"2026-07-25T23:35:46","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T18:35:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=17234"},"modified":"2026-07-25T23:35:46","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T18:35:46","slug":"recovery-mission-underway-for-missing-aung-hla-who-slipped-off-rock-into-niagara-river-while-fishing-with-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=17234","title":{"rendered":"Recovery mission underway for missing Aung Hla who slipped off rock into Niagara River while fishing with friends"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F07%2Fmultiple-law-enforcement-agencies-searching-135467389.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The desperate search for an 18-year-old recent high school graduate who vanished in the raging waters of the Niagara River has turned into a heartbreaking recovery mission after days of exhaustive efforts by emergency crews, according to reports.<\/p>\n<p>Aung Hla, of Buffalo, disappeared Wednesday after slipping from rocks while fishing with five friends in a restricted section of the Niagara Gorge near the Whirlpool Park stairs, according to New York State Park Police.<\/p>\n<p>The agency said it received a report of a man in the river around 10:15 a.m.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The 18-year-old recent high school graduate was fishing with friends when he slipped on a rock into the dangerous waters of the Lower Niagara River. <span class=\"credit\">WGRZ<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>A map of the area shows the area scores of rescue teams searched for three days. <span class=\"credit\">WGRZ<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Witnesses said the recent Kenmore West High School graduate fell into the swift current, fought desperately to stay afloat, and was then swept away by the river\u2019s powerful rapids, according to local news station<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wgrz.com\/article\/news\/local\/missing-wny-teen-search-becomes-recovery-mission\/71-07e042ab-84f1-4c8a-91bd-ebb2c4eea441\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> 2WGRZ<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Since then, dozens of first responders have searched relentlessly by land, air and water, deploying helicopters, boats, jet skis and night-vision drones in hopes of finding the teenager.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>But on Friday, after an extensive three-day search stretching from the Niagara Gorge to the mouth of the river at Lake Ontario, authorities announced that the rescue effort had officially become a recovery operation, according to the outlet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur thoughts are with the young man\u2019s family and friends during this difficult time,\u201d New York State Park Police said in a statement.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Officials from multiple agencies searched for Aung by land, sea and air. <span class=\"credit\">WGRZ<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Aung Hla had recently graduated from high school. <span class=\"credit\">ABC7<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The search brought together the cooperation of several agencies, including New York State Park Police, New York State Police, the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Border Patrol, Canadian Park Police, Erie and Niagara County aviation units and the Niagara Falls Fire Department.<\/p>\n<p>Capt. Chris Rola of New York State Park Police said the picturesque gorge can be deceiving.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2026While it\u2019s a beautiful area, it\u2019s a very dangerous area if you get into the areas that are restricted,\u201d he told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wkbw.com\/news\/local-news\/search-underway-for-missing-18-year-old-in-niagara-river-gorge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WKBW<\/a>, noting that the washed-out trails made search efforts especially challenging.<\/p>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Morning Report\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>For Aung\u2019s family, however, hope has been difficult to let go.<\/p>\n<p>His father, Maung Hla, said he still believes his son may somehow be alive.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy belief is that my son somewhere in a stick like this, and they hold their hand and then somebody coming, help,\u201d the heartbroken dad told the outlet earlier this week.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Although the boy\u2019s extended family hold out hope, the search mission has turned into a recovery mission. <span class=\"credit\">ABC7<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The tragedy has shaken the entire Kenmore West High School community, where Aung graduated just last month.<\/p>\n<p>School officials said they are \u201cheartbroken\u201d and opened the school\u2019s Family Support Center to provide free counseling for students, staff and families struggling to cope with the devastating news.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is an extremely difficult time for the entire Kenmore West High School community and we join everyone in hoping for a safe outcome while keeping his family and loved ones in our thoughts,\u201d the school said in a statement.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The desperate search for an 18-year-old recent high school graduate who vanished in the raging waters of the Niagara River has turned into a heartbreaking recovery mission after days of exhaustive efforts by emergency crews, according to reports. Aung Hla, of Buffalo, disappeared Wednesday after slipping from rocks while fishing with five friends in a&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17235,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/multiple-law-enforcement-agencies-searching-135467389.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17234"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17234\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}