Two people have died after a boat holding 13 people capsized in Colorado’s Lake Pueblo over Memorial Day weekend, officials said.
A call for help came in just after 7:30 p.m. Sunday and witnesses reported seeing a boat holding eight juveniles and five adults capsize in the lake near the North Picnic Area, Colorado Parks and Wildlife said in a news release.
The boat turned over during high winds in the expansive lake which spans over 4,600 surface acres of water and 60 miles of shoreline. Lake Pueblo is located about 40 miles south of Colorado Springs.
When officials arrived to the scene they found multiple people in the 60-degree water.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Rangers responded by boat and rescued eight juveniles and three adults, and recovered the body of a woman “who apparently drowned.”
The woman was identified as Jessica Prindle, 38, of Pueblo West, the Pueblo County Coroner said.
The 11 survivors were hospitalized for treatment of hypothermia and other injuries and one juvenile was flown to the hospital, officials said.
The search for the remaining missing adult stretched into Monday with sonar equipment brought in. The search was suspended until 10 p.m. Monday evening due to high winds.
A body was recovered Tuesday morning by the Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s Marine Evidence Recovery Team (MERT).
“Our MERT team worked all night and around 5:45 a.m we located a victim in 107 feet of water,” Joe Stadterman, park manager at Lake Pueblo and MERT team member, said in the Colorado Parks and Wildlife release.
The body is now with the Pueblo County Coroner’s office for identification and official cause of death determination.
If the victim is determined to have died by drowning, it will be the eighth drowning victim in the state this year, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials said.
“This is a tragic loss of life,” Stadterman said. “And it underscores the importance of being extremely careful around the water. If you are on or even near the water, we strongly urge you to wear a life jacket.”
2020 marked the worst year for water deaths in the state with 34 drowning victims. A total of 22 people drowned in 2021.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
