Body of missing swimmer found in Lahontan Reservoir

Robert Perea, The Fernley Reporter

The body of a swimmer who disappeared in the water near Beach 30 at the Lahontan State Recreation Area was found Wednesday morning.

Churchill County Sheriff Richard Hickox, Jr. said the body of a Eureka County resident was found by a member of the Fallon/Churchill Fire Department dive team.

Hickox said the Churchill County Sheriff’s Office and Churchill County Search and Rescue responded to Lahontan Tuesday afternoon to assist State Park Rangers in searching for a missing swimmer who had last been seen near Beach 30 swimming toward the shoreline.

Utilizing sonar technology, they found what they called an object of interest on the screen that did not match the surroundings and other images visible on the sonar readout. Members of the Fallon/Churchill Fire Department Dive Team were requested. The divers were unable to locate the subject as the current and waves were pushing them and the boat off course. Shortly after dark the search was suspended until the next morning when visibility was restored, and the winds were calmer.   

Wednesday morning, members of the Churchill County Sheriff’s Office, Churchill County Search and Rescue and the Fallon/Churchill Fire Department Dive team reassembled at Lahontan to resume the search in the area where the unidentified image was observed the evening before. After a short time of searching, a member of the dive team found the missing swimmer near the lake’s bottom. 

Hickox said no further details will be released at this time out of respect for the grieving family.