New details: Divers recover drowning victim's body at Thousand Hills; identity released
NEAR KIRKSVILLE, Mo. — (Updated to reflect new details from Missouri State Water Patrol)
Divers have recovered the body of the man who drowned at Thousand Hills State Park’s Forest Lake Monday afternoon.
Crews from the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Water Patrol Division used sonar equipment to locate the body of Steven Puckett, 64, of Unionville, Missouri.
Divers found Puckett’s body at 9:50 a.m. Tuesday in the same general area where he went under while swimming.
Investigators said Puckett and his friend, Marlys Oglesby, 67, also of Unionville, had rented a pontoon on Monday.
The water patrol reports Oglesby was swimming near the boat without a life jacket and became distressed.
Puckett, who was not wearing a life jacket either, jumped from the pontoon into the water to try and rescue Oglesby.
Puckett went underwater and did not resurface.
Good Samaritans on another pontoon told KTVO Monday they saw Oglesby in distress, and Puckett nowhere in sight.
The witnesses helped Oglesby onto their pontoon, but they could not find Puckett.
Afterwards, Oglesby was having breathing problems at the marina so emergency medical crews treated her and took her on a stretcher to a nearby ambulance.
The drowning happened in a “No Swimming” zone in the deepest part of the lake where the water is 45 feet deep.
Multiple agencies responded to the state park shortly before 2 p.m. Monday to help.
Crews used sonar equipment Monday afternoon to try and locate Puckett’s body. They had no luck, but divers returned on Tuesday morning and were able to locate the deceased Unionville man.
