Authorities on Monday started to examine the boat that capsized and caused the disappearance of a Plum man in Lake Erie.
Raymond Burns, 58, went missing nine days earlier, on Aug. 17.
The 21-foot recreational fishing boat was hit by a squall and swamped by massive waves just before 10 a.m. as it was in deep water 10 to 17 miles north of Conneaut, Ohio. Burns and three other men were thrown into the lake.
The other three men were saved by a commercial fishing crew. Burns had a flotation vest, but witnesses said he was not responsive and they lost sight of him.
The boat was taken to Erie for an analysis, according to Ohio Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Maureen Kocot. She couldn’t say what analysis of the boat might reveal or who is taking part in the review.
Kocot said ODNR continues to search the lake using side scan sonar.
The searchers also are using a daily U.S. Coast Guard analysis of water currents and weather patterns to plot where Burns’ body might be.
The ODNR is talking daily with the Burns family.
“They call me every day with an update, and usually it’s, ‘No luck yet,’ ” Marcy Burns, Raymond’s wife, said Monday from her Plum home.
She said she’s anxious for the search to end so she and her husband’s loved ones can mourn him, honor him and try to find a semblance of closure after the tragedy.
Amid the waiting, Marcy Burns has been spending time with her two daughters.
Kaila Murray, 31, flew in from Texas last week to be with her mom and her sister, Skyler, 18.
Raymond Burns, who grew up in Plum’s Renton section and went to Plum High School, worked for nearly 32 years as a laborer for Plum’s municipal water and sewer divisions. He and Marcy Burns were married for 39 years.
A memorial luncheon and service in Raymond Burns’ honor is scheduled for 2 to 7 p.m. Sept. 1 at Plum’s Renton Fire Hall, 1996 Old Mine Road.
