A California resident died this week in a drowning incident in the Colorado River, about 4.5 miles north of Lake Havasu.
The incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon, with eyewitnesses reporting that the victim, 69-year-old Robert L. Gardera, of Ferran Island, jumped from a moored boat to retrieve a fallen fishing pole. It says. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office, the victim began to struggle underwater for unknown reasons and disappeared under the waves, never to surface again.
San Bernardino County Sheriff divers joined the Mojave County Sheriff’s Office and Lake Havasu Police Department diver teams in an attempt to locate the victim. A helicopter from the Arizona Department of Public Safety also cooperated in the search, which lasted until sunset on Thursday.
The search operation continued from 8:00 am on Thursday until Gardera was found at 9:30 am. Gardera’s body was transferred to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Coroner’s Department for further investigation.
Anyone with information about Mr. Gardera’s death should contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office at 760-326-9200 or anonymously call 1-800-782-7463.
