1 Dead, 3 Missing After Boat Carrying Sailors From S.D. Capsizes

A water-skiing trip to a lake in northern Nevada by seven San Diego-based Navy airmen on leave from a training mission has left one sailor dead and three others missing, a Navy spokesman said Wednesday.

Two helicopters from Fallon Naval Air Station and officers from the Washoe County Sheriff’s Department were searching for the missing men, said Dan Barber, assistant public affairs officer at the base.

The seven airplane mechanics and technicians, who had been sent to the air station in Nevada for two weeks of training in aircraft carrier operations, spent Tuesday--their day off--water-skiing on Pyramid Lake, Barber said.

The sailors rented a 15-foot boat, which capsized about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when it was overwhelmed by high winds and large swells, Barber said. He said the sailors were tossed into the 45-degree water.

Pyramid Lake, 30 miles in length, is situated on an isolated Paiute Indian reservation, Barber said. The gusty winds that capsized the boat often sweep across the popular fishing site during the summer, he added.

Two survivors swam to shore and walked across barren terrain before they were able to contact the Sheriff’s Department at about midnight,--nearly five hours after the accident occurred, Barber said.

A helicopter from the naval air station was dispatched about two hours later to conduct a search. It rescued one survivor from the lake.

Second Class Petty Officer Brian L. Brunner was pulled out of the water about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday and was transported to Washoe Medical Center in Reno, where attempts to resuscitate him failed, Barber said.

He said two of the survivors were also taken to the hospital, about 40 miles from the lake. They were later released.

Barber said the seven sailors were attached to Carrier Air Wing Reserve 30, based at Miramar Naval Air Station. He said they were all from San Diego.

Barber identified the survivors as First Class Petty Officer Roger W. Looper, 34; First Class Petty Officer Steven J. Martin, 29, and Second Class Petty Officer Joseph T. Thomas, 29.

Those still missing are Chief Petty Officer Thomas W. Broker, 34; Second Class Petty Officer David N. Keyes, 28, and First Class Petty Officer Gerald S. Ward, 36.

MP, STEVE LOPEZ / Los Angeles Times