GALENA – Searchers have recovered the body of a boater who disappeared in Hoover Reservoir after trying to free a sailboat that lodged on a sandbar over the weekend.
Authorities say the body of 54-year-old Thomas Mixter, of Columbus, was recovered by a dive team in over 20 feet of water Monday morning.
Mixter and a friend were in a small sailboat Saturday when the motor stopped working amid strong winds, said Genoa Township Deputy Fire Chief Joe Ponzi.
Authorities say Mixter apparently jumped into the water to free the boat when it got stuck, and he couldn’t climb back on the boat.
The friend notified authorities about what happened.
Ponzi says the sailboat had life jackets, but Mixter hadn’t been wearing one.