Officers tow the missing paddle boat back to shore. (Photos by Amanda McFarland)
Police personnel staged at the Winona Lake Park to search for the missing boaters.
WINONA LAKE — All is well following a scare in which two paddle boaters went missing this afternoon on Winona Lake.
The teen girls, who asked to remain anonymous, had rented a paddle boat from the Winona Lake Parks Department. They were out on the lake when a storm blew in and they decided to seek shelter at a dock until the thunder and lightning passed.
When the girls did not return and did not contact the parks department, concerned personnel called 911 and soon officers with the Warsaw and Winona Lake Police Departments, Winona Lake Fire were combing the lake, looking for the boaters. They staged at the park and at the Kosciusko County fairgrounds to allow for a broader search. Divers were called to the scene, as well.
Meanwhile, the girls were located and returned to the park, safe and sound, just as the storm was ending.
“Everybody’s glad they’re OK,” Winona Lake Deputy Chief Mike Foster said. “We sure wish they had called to let us know they were OK.”