Two men were found dead in Utah Lake after they had been reported missing early Sunday morning.
A search and rescue team first found the watercraft that belonged to brothers Jorge Anica, 33, and Manuel Anica, 21, at around 9 a.m. Less than an hour later, the bodies of both men were found not far from each other.
Both West Valley City men had life vests on, Sgt. Spencer Cannon of the Utah County Sheriff’s Office said.
“It’s unusual to have people drown who are wearing life jackets,” he said. “But we don’t know what trouble they encountered — whether one of them was injured or if they just fell off the watercraft and if the cold got to them, which could happen.”
Cannon said the water temperature in Utah Lake is about 57 degrees Fahrenheit.
“You can’t make it for very long in that temperature of water without starting to not be able to think clearly and losing strength to do anything — try to make shore or anything like that,” Cannon said.
He stressed that what caused the death of the two men won’t be known for sure until the medical examiner makes a determination.
The Anicas were last seen at The Knolls, which is located on the west side of Utah Lake around mile marker 22. Cannon said family members found their truck with personal belongings inside it, but no other other sign of them. Jorge Anica’s wife reported them missing at around 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning, and said they had left for the lake at around 4:20 p.m. Saturday.
A similar incident happened last year in the same area of Utah Lake. Two teenage girls disappeared near The Knolls and were found dead eight days later.
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