A student who went missing after a rowing team’s boat capsized Thursday in an Orlando lake following a nearby lightning strike has been found dead, officials confirmed Friday night.
Following an extensive search, the student’s body was located at about 5:15 p.m. local time Friday by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit, the Orlando Fire Department reported. The child’s name was not immediately released.
“We are incredibly saddened by this incident and appreciate the efforts of the multiple agencies who worked together over the past 24 hours to assist in the rescue,” the fire department tweeted.
Medics, meanwhile, took one child to a hospital and three others who were on the boat were sent home with their parents following the incident on Lake Fairview Thursday evening, Orlando Fire Department Executive Deputy Chief Ian Davis said during an earlier news conference.
“The rowing club was on the lake practicing,” Davis said. “There was lightning strike in the area. We’re unsure if it actually hit the vessel or was just in the area. The boat was capsized.”
Davis said divers and officials from multiple agencies searched a wide area for the missing child. He did not say what school the team members attend.
Orlando television station WESH reported that the team was practicing at the North Orlando Rowing facility. Its online calendar said middle school and JV/Varsity teams were scheduled to practice between 3:50 and 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
“We are going to use every diver that we have to see if we can locate the missing child,” Davis had said in the news conference.
The Orlando Rowing Club, which says its mission is to promote the sport of rowing in central Florida, posted a message on its Facebook page late Thursday saying, “Holding vigil in the rowing community tonight.”
