Authorities find fatal boating crash victim, investigating continues

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Water rescue workers have recovered the body of a man whose boat struck a cement pillar power line Saturday.

An off-duty Panama City firefighter onboard a boat found a vessel that had collided with a power line cement pillar in the North Bay on Saturday, according to Lt. Jennifer Stein of the U.S. Coast Guard, Mobile sector.

Stein said firefighters were joined by a Bay County Sheriff's Office helicopter and Florida Wildlife Commission officers. The Coast Guard Station Panama City also launched a small boat.

"The fire department did side-scan sonar and found the body" of the victim in the collision, and wildlife commission officers recovered him, she said.

Stein said the man was determined to have been the only person on board, and that his identity was not being released pending notification of his next of kin.

Stein also said that the wildlife commission is investigating the incident.

A spokesman for the commission could not be reached for comment on Sunday.

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Man killed in North Bay boating accident, officials say