Missing kayaker found dead in West Grand Traverse Bay in northern Michigan
A missing male victim from an overturned kayak was found dead in West Grand Traverse Bay a little after 11 a.m. on Wednesday, the Leelanau County Sheriff's Office says.
The victim has been identified as James Arthur Bottorff III, 26, a current resident of Wilmington, North Carolina, and originally from the Leelanau County area, the sheriff says.
Leelanau County 911 received a call on Tuesday at about 5 p.m. reporting an overturned kayak on West Grand Traverse Bay near Sunrise Beach in Peshawbestown, according to the sheriff's office.
Witnesses said that a male victim was last seen about 200 yards offshore, and extensive search operations lasted until about 8:45 p.m., when visibility and water conditions made it unsafe for emergency responders to continue, the sheriff's office says.
Search efforts, which multiple local agencies assisted, resumed on Wednesday morning before the body was found, according to the sheriff's office.
The incident remains under investigation.
