Lane B and I got off work at 0800 this morning. He went to a couple of meetings and I went home to change out of uniform then right back to the Marine Building.
Gary M., Lane B., one of the other team members, a Marine Deputy and I hook up two boats and head for last weeks accident scene on Hayden Lake.
The boat ramp is closed due to construction around it so we plug up the ramp and just left the trailers in the water while we head to the other end of the 4000 acre lake. That POed some guy because he wanted to use the ramp closed or not.
We get to the scene and the others tell me the water has gone down. I was the only one that wasnt there during the recovery so I didnt have a clue.
We get a GPS reading to start our search while Lane B and Gary M. get the new AGAs set up. This is the first time were using them so we didnt hook up the com system.
They did compass runs in the area and a couple of items were found but not what we really want to find. We didnt find the Cinder Block anchor they were trying to deploy when the canoe flipped over. It will be deep into the silt but the rope will still be visible and we didnt find it. Hummm, could witnesses be off with the area of Lilly Pads they went in at?
Our information said they flipped and tried to swim to shore with their fishing gear. But where witnesses said they flipped Gary M. found a fishing pole. That means the anchor was further out than we were told.
So Gary M. and Lane B. keep sucking air and looking. Later Lane B. found another item but still not the one we want.
So now its my turn. I tried two compass runs which were very ineffective. The wind was blowing the lake into about 1 rollers where we were which kept the bottom surge up limiting the vis and knocking me off course if I didnt just stare at the compass. I need to look around and not just stare at the compass so thats it plan B is in order.
I tell the guys on the other boat to give me the tow rope and pull me in the direction they swam in. Run one, nothing but I could concentrate on looking at the bottom.
We get close to shore and do a 180 degree turn. Back on course it was just a minute or two when Walla there they are. A barely visible silt covered pair of Blue Jeans. I drop the tow rope drop down the 7 to the bottom and retrieve them. The father of the survivor, whose jeans we just recovered was watching the operation. Once we photographed them and the contents we turned them over to Dad.
Lane B did an outstanding job of following the swim-line the two took. It was windy and choppy which makes it hard to hold a jet boat on course.
The dad told us the kid that died was an only child. So very sad.
Here is the sat pic of the area.
http://www.terraserver.microsoft.com/image.aspx?T=1&S=11&Z=11&X=1311&Y=13230&W=1
We are searching in the Lilly Pads which are a much smaller area this time of the year.
Gary D.