CASCADE LOCKS, Ore. (KATU) — A dive team is working to recover a car from the Columbia River near Cascade Locks on Thursday, possibly bringing closure to the case of a missing family that has remained open for more than six decades.

The Hood River County Sheriff's Office believes they've found a vehicle connected to the 1958 case of the Martin Family.

Back on Dec. 7, 1958, Kenneth and Barbara Martin took their three daughters, ages 11, 13, and 14, to go look for Christmas wreath greenery in the Columbia River Gorge. They never returned home.

"Months later, the bodies of two of the Martin daughters, Virginia, 13, and Susan, 11, were discovered in the Columbia River—one near Camas, Washington, and the other near Bonneville Dam," the sheriff's office said. "Investigators speculated that the family’s vehicle may have entered the river, prompting extensive dive operations over the years."

Recently, however, local diver Archer Mayo discovered what investigators think is the family's vehicle in the river, sparking renewed interest in the decades-old mystery.

"Once I discovered this pit, this basically 20-foot deep pit right in the middle of the canal, I'm like, that's where the car is," he said during an interview with KATU News. "So, that night I didn't sleep and I dove the next morning and I went back and I'm like, oh my gosh, this is the car."

Matt English, the Hood River County Sheriff, tells KATU News, there's a lot of work still to be done and a lot of questions they hope can get answered.

"This isn't just about recovering a vehicle. This is still an active criminal investigation," English said.

English uses the word "criminal" because there are still a lot of unanswered questions about the case. The hope is this recovered car will help answer them.

Late Thursday afternoon, officials with the Hood River County Sheriff's Office released a statement saying they were not able to remove the vehicle "due to significant debris." Officials say they will try again on Friday, to preserve as much of the car as possible. No timeline was given on when the vehicle will be recovered, the sheriff's office said.