ROXBURY — The Maine Warden Service on Wednesday recovered the body of Thomas Averill, 55, of Roxbury, who reportedly fell out of his boat Tuesday evening on Ellis Pond.
Averill was fishing alone when he fell out of a 14-foot aluminum boat, according to Mark Latti, spokesman for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife.
At about 7:50 p.m. Wednesday, people on shore noticed an aluminum boat moving across the pond with no one aboard, Latti said. They then saw movement in the water and heard cries for help.
Several people boated out to the location, where they spotted a hat floating in the water but were unable to locate anyone.
The Maine Warden Service and other rescuers began their search Tuesday night at West Shore Road.
When found, the boat was in gear and a fishing rod and line were out. The boat was wedged against the shore of an island, according to Latti. Crews searched the shorelines of the pond and island until 12:30 a.m. Wednesday.
An airplane and divers from the Maine Warden Service returned to the pond Wednesday morning. At about 8:10 a.m., Chris Hilton, a pilot with the warden service, spotted an object on the bottom of the pond and directed divers to the area.
Divers from the warden service recovered Averill’s body at about 8:30 a.m., Latti said, in about 10 feet of water and about 200 feet from shore.
Averill was not wearing a life jacket, but there was one in the boat, Sgt. Kyle Hladik of the warden service said in a statement released by Latti.
Averill’s body was taken to Meader & Son Funeral Home in Rumford.
Along with the Maine Warden Service, the Oxford County Sheriff’s Office, Med-Care Ambulance and the Roxbury, Mexico and Rumford fire departments responded to the scene.
Ellis Pond, also known as Roxbury Pond and Silver Lake, is a 920-acre glacial lake in Roxbury and Byron. The pond has a maximum depth of 43 feet, according to Maine IFW.
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