- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Divers recover body of missing boater
The map above shows a rough estimate of the area where the fatal boating accident on Saturday, May 28, 2016, occurred. The location is not approximate. Courtesy of Google Maps.
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The body of a man who went missing after a Saturday afternoon boating accident has been recovered from Clear Lake.
A dive team found the body early Monday afternoon in the area of Anderson Island near Kelseyville, according to Lt. Norm Taylor of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
The name of the victim has not yet been released pending notification of next of kin, Taylor said.
Taylor said the boating accident occurred at about 2 p.m. Saturday.
Authorities responded to Braito's Marina in Buckingham on the report of a single vessel that went down near Anderson Island, with the missing man last being seen just north of the island, as Lake County News has reported.
“The cause is still under investigation,” said Taylor.
He said witnesses reported that the boat actually fell apart as it was under way.
“Currently we don't have any information that would indicate that it was speeding,” said Taylor, who added there is no speed limit on the lake.
The boat's operator, a 55-year-old male, was taken to Sutter Lakeside Hospital for treatment of moderate injuries. He was later released, Taylor said.
Another passenger, a 73-year-old male, sustained serious injuries and was flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Taylor said on Monday afternoon that he did not know that man's current condition.
Taylor said the individual who died in the accident was a 74-year-old man.
Reports from the scene indicated that the man had last been seen at the time of the accident, as he and the other two men went into the water.
The search for the missing man had begun immediately after the incident. A Cal Fire helicopter had been among the resources used to look for him initially, based on emergency radio traffic.
Taylor said the search had continued through the weekend, with divers working 18 hours a day to find the man.
Lake County's local dive team was joined on Sunday by one from Marin County which assisted with the search, Taylor said. It was the work of the divers that finally recovered the body.
“His remains were found in the middle of the boat wreckage on the bottom of the lake,” said Taylor.
The Sheriff's Marine Patrol on Monday afternoon was continuing the work of raising the boat's wreckage so they could continue the investigation to determine the cause of the accident, according to Taylor. A coroner's case also was opened as a result of the body's recovery.
As it was a single-vessel accident, Taylor said the cause is likely to be either a problem with the operator or mechanical failure. Both possibilities are being investigated.
“Until we can determine that we won't know where to go from here,” he said.
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