(Sean Smith | Herald Journal) Billy Mercer and Brandy Smith pose for a photo with Smith’s recovered engagement ring. Mercer found the ring in a matter of minutes after it had been lost in the Oneida Narrows.

When Smithfield resident Brandy Smith went tubing at the Oneida Narrows, she was devastated when she lost her engagement ring — a family heirloom — after falling off her tube. Thankfully for her, a skilled diver with a passion for finding treasure came to her rescue.

During her trip down the Narrows with family, Brandy slipped off her tube, hit her hand on some rocks, and lost the ring her fiancé's grandmother had provided for her engagement.

“They scourged the area,” said Sean Smith, Brandy’s father. “It was only about knee deep water, and the current wasn’t very strong, but for some reason, they just couldn’t find it.”

Sean remembered he had a metal detector, so he brought it to the scene. After searching for an additional two hours, the family went home crushed as the daylight dwindled. Once they were home, Sean made a last attempt at finding the ring and made a post in a Facebook group called Utah Metal Detecting, asking if anyone had advice on what to do.

To his surprise, a man living in Salt Lake, Billy Mercer, responded to the post saying he has diving gear and a waterproof metal detector. He also offered to meet the family at the Oneida Narrows to search for the ring.

To read more, visit hjnews.com.

This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aim to inform readers across the state.

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