3 people are dead and 2 remain missing after river tubers floated over a dam in North Carolina

• A group of river tubers floated over a dam in North Carolina on Wednesday evening.
• While four tubers were rescued, three others were found dead and two remain missing.
• Emergency services said most tubers get out of the water and walk around the dam.

Three people are dead and two are missing after a group of river tubers floated over a dam in Northern Carolina on Wednesday evening, authorities said.

Rockingham County Emergency Services Director Rodney Cates told reporters at a press conference that the group passed over the about eight-foot-high Duke Energy dam along the Dan river while on a floating trip in Eden, according to The Associated Press.

Along with the three dead and two missing, four other people were rescued and taken to a hospital to be treated for injures.

Cates said that a Duke Energy employee saw the tubers and called 911 on Thursday afternoon.

It's unclear why the tubers did not contact authorities sooner, but Cates said it's possible that they didn't have phones with them on the river.

Cates said in an update reported by WFMY on Friday morning that the dam is marked by signs, and that tubers usually get out and walk around the dam.

The identities of the three people who died have not been publicly released.