Indiana Conservation Officers are investigating the death of a Wisconsin man at Patoka Lake.
Sunday evening, the body of 33-year-old Travis Ray St. Martin of Racine, Wisconsin, was recovered by conservation officer public safety divers after he went missing in the water.
Earlier in the day, a conservation officer was on boat patrol on the lake. Witnesses alerted the officer of a possible drowning. The officer immediately responded.
It was later found out that two females were aboard a towable tube attached to a rental boat by a rope when they fell off the tube and struggled to stay afloat.
Multiple people from the rental boat jumped into the water to help. Both women were rescued, however, St. Martin disappeared under the water after he jumped in to help.
The Crawford County coroner’s office ruled the preliminary cause of death as accidental drowning. No alcohol or drugs were suspected to be contributing factors.
Although adequate life jackets were present on the rental boat, none were in use. Indiana Conservation Officers strongly encourage wearing a life jacket when recreating on or around bodies of water.
