Around 9 a.m. on Sunday, April 17th, 2011, two recreational fishermen in a boat noticed a boat grounded on the south side of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.  They went to look and found a body floating face down nearby in the water.  They held onto the body and summoned help.  A US Coast Guard boat arrived on scene, lifted the body into their boat, with no pulse found and foam at nose and mouth, and commenced CPR.  They took the body to the Coast Guard Station Port O'Connor, where EMS arrived and continued CPR.  CPR was discontinued; on call Justice of the Peace declared the boater deceased at 10:10 a.m.  The grounded boat was a 22 foot flat-bottom Mowdy with a 200 hp Evinrude outboard.  

When the MSEO arrived, the key was turned on, the kill switch lanyard was still hooked to the light switch, the throttle was in about 2/3rds forward position.  The boat was 49' onshore in sand.  The steering was operable and the jack plate only about one half inch raised.  The propeller appears as though it had spun for some time while in the sand.  It appears the boater had been separated from the boat and it had then grounded.  The boater had a deep laceration in his left foot and had a history of high blood pressure.  

Autopsy conclusion was death due to drowning with multiple injuries as contributing factors.  The autopsy discovered six broken ribs and hypertension-type heart disease.  The toxicology report discovered no drugs or alcohol.  This event is being named as an unattended death; why the decedent originally became separated from the boat is unknown.

Port O'Connor                 