JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. – The body of a man who was canoeing with his wife before he was tossed into the choppy water of Lake Wellington last month has been found.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies said they recovered the body of Henry Wendel, 66, on Friday afternoon.
The multi-agency search for Wendel spanned several days and was suspended twice as the water in Lake Wellington was still freezing cold before temperatures started warming up, making it impossible for crews to search the area.
Wendel’s wife was flown to a local hospital with severe hypothermia following the accident but has since been released, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Mark Techmeyer said in a prepared statement.
The couple, believed to be from Bailey, was canoeing on the lake when the wind kicked up. It’s not known if wind caused the canoe to capsize.
Head Ranger Randi Clark told Denver7 at the time that the most difficult part of the search was knowing there were life jackets in the canoe, but they weren’t being used.
Agencies involved in the search and recovery efforts during the past month included North Fork Fire, West Metro and South Metro dive teams, Search and Rescue Dogs of Colorado and of the United States, and the Colorado Department of Wildlife.
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