On March 20,  2011 at approximately 10:00  the owner and operator of a1985, Stratos motor boat was ivolved in a boating accident that resulted in the partial sinking of that boat.  According to operator, he and his two friends launched his boat at boat ramp #5 on Canyon Lake at around 10:00 PM.  After cruising around the lake for approximately 30 minutes they stopped, killed the motor,  and began to drift.  

At that point, operator stated that he began using his onboard fish finder to locate fish in the water.  As he was watching the monitor, he observed that there was water coming in to the boat.  operator walked to the rear of the boat were he observed water in all of the rear compartments.  Then, operator observed that the entire rear of the boat was sinking, and that it was almost completely submerged in the water.  With their life jackets on, operator and his two friends jumped in to the water and swam to a private residence on shore.  

After exiting the lake, operator and his friends contacted the owner of the said residence.  owner contacted the Comal County Sheriff's Office, and two deputies arrived on scene.  Comal County Game Warden  was notified about the accident, and he arrived on location.  Warden intervewed operator and his two friends about the accident.  During his interviews with them, Warden did not observe the odor of an alcoholic beverage on any of their breath.  Furthermore, operator and his two friends submitted to taking a Preliminary Breath Test(PBT); no alcohol was detected on any of the subjects during those tests.

Warden escorted operator and his two friends back to his truck which was parked at boat ramp #5.  At the boat ramp, Warden obtained written statements from each of the boat's occupants, and he took several photos of their PFDs. 

The following morning, Warden located the partially a float boat in cove near the Pottor's Creek camping area on Canyon Lake.  Warden contacted operator and told him that he located the boat.  operator arrived on scene and he made arrangements to have the boat recovered by a local tow service.  After the boat was recovered, operator examined the hull for any damage that may have caused the boat to take on water.  While examining the hull, operator observed that the drain plug was missing in the boat's hull.  operator contacted Warden and informed him.

After completeing his investigation, Warden concluded that the boat sank due to the operator's  own negligence with failing to properly plug the boat's drain hole.
Startzville                   