COVENTRY TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A body was recovered from the East Reservoir of Portage Lakes Wednesday morning after an hours-long search for a missing boater, according to the Summit County Sheriff's Office.
Around 5:45 a.m., a neighbor noticed a fishing boat adrift in the lake, but did not think anything of it until the boat was spotted again floating in the same position around 7:30 a.m., according to Coventry Township Fire Chief Adam Rockich.
Authorities were called to the scene and found the boat— with a lot of water in it— partially capsized, with its navigation lights and sonar system on, Rockich said.
"There was a lot of fishing gear that was retrieved out of the water and some items, but there was still like a cell phone in the boat and stuff like that, so it did appear like maybe something happened where the boat did partially tip and the person might have been thrown out of the water," Rockich said during a press conference.
Watch Wednesday's press conference in the player below:
The boat was registered to 55-year-old Michael J. Ocepek from Copley. A welfare check was conducted, but he was not found at his home.
His truck and trailer were located in the Old State Park parking lot. Investigators checked with the man's girlfriend, who said the man had planned to go fishing on Wednesday, Rockich explained.
Around 9:45 a.m., divers with handheld sonar units located what appeared to be a body in the water not far from where the boat had been floating.
Divers made a physical hand touch identification to determine that it was a body, and the coroner's office was called, Rockich said.
Rockich said the man recovered from the water appeared to be in his 50s and did not have a life preserver on.
"The person that we retrieved out did not have a life vest on. Anytime you're out, you're boating — especially in the middle of the night— you're by yourself, doing a lot of night fishing, having a life preserver on that would help to get you to shore, keep you afloat," Rockich said.
"This is always really rough for families, and when you're doing it, we try to do everything we can to give as much dignity and respect to the person that's deceased," Rockich said.
