A man drowned Saturday in Dillon Reservoir after a short, intense storm blew him off his paddleboard, according to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office.
The man was paddleboarding at approximately 2 p.m. when a storm knocked him off his board and moved the board away from him. The man, who has not yet been publicly identified, could not keep his head above water and drowned.
A team of investigators at 8:20 p.m. found his body under 60 feet of water about 100 yards from the shoreline. Witnesses told investigators that the man had a lifejacket strapped to his board but was not wearing it, according to the sheriff’s office. “Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of the victim,” Summit County Sheriff Jaime FitzSimons said in a news release. “These search and recovery events can be extremely long in duration. The longer they run the more pain and anguish they can cause. I am comforted that we were able to locate and recover the victim quickly and bring closure to his family and friends.”