MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. — Divers recovered one of the two missing boaters at Apache Lake Tuesday after a boat capsized Saturday night, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office confirmed.
MCSO said it was the body of 41-year-old Deanna Peterson. Divers will continue to search for 52-year-old Rick Le Grand.
MCSO says a flash flood happened near Alder Creek around 9 p.m. Saturday. While boaters scrambled to get away, a vessel with five people on board suffered a mechanical problem.
Other boaters tried to help the stranded vessel, but they weren't able to restart the boat before it capsized in the wake of the flood.
Three of the people on board were rescued by the other boat, but MCSO says one person is still missing.
Penny Le Grand, the mother of Le Grand, spoke to 12 News about how her son loved the lake.
"He loved his boat, he loved being here at the lake, this was his backyard," Penny said.
She described her son's lifetime of love for that lake and the entire surrounding area. Born and raised in Arizona, she said Rick was absolutely a "desert rat" and proud to be.
"He had many friends that loved him, he was a caretaker, a fun-loving man and he took care of me and his dad," she added.
Rescue teams say there is a large amount of debris in the area and zero visibility which is making the recovery more difficult.
FROM TUESDAY:
Sky 12 and MCSO flew over the area, searching the scene known as "party cove" at Apache Lake, after approaching storms sent two boats into a panic.
"At that time they scrambled to get back on the boat and obviously realized it was a flash flood, so they got on the boat, one of the boat's started to malfunction so they couldn't get it started," Sgt. Joaquin Enriquez with MCSO told 12 News.
Enriquez detailed that debris from recent rain and remnants from the Bush Fire made things even more difficult for divers.
"The flash flood just came rushing down obviously giving no time for anything and there's was no resistance that's why the boat capsized so quickly," he added.
Now, divers searching in a 200-to 350-foot area are dealing with lower visibility than usual due to the debris and search boats are getting stuck and engines are being stalled due to debris in the water.
Apache Lake is located about 65 miles northeast of Phoenix.
Rescue teams say there is a large amount of debris in the area and zero visibility which is making the search more difficult.
"He loved this area and it's kind of a spiritual thing for him I think and I guess if he had to be taken this was the place that it should've been it was just too soon, he's supposed to do that after I'm gone," Penny added.
In a statement to 12 News, Deanna's fiancé says: "We want to take this moment to extend our gratitude to the outpouring of support from our loved ones."
FROM MONDAY:
