Woman charged after body of missing boater pulled from Lake Wylie

LAKE WYLIE, S.C. — Search teams recovered the body of a missing boater from Lake Wylie early Thursday morning, and police charged a woman with boating under the influence in connection with the death.

Emergency crews were on the lake at 8 a.m. to resume their search for the boater, who officials said fell overboard Wednesday night.

Multiple agencies were called around 9 p.m. to the lake, near Hideaway Road and Snug Harbor Road, and were told that the person had fallen off a boat and never resurfaced.

For hours, dive teams searched the lake but did not find the boater. That person’s name has not been released.

A woman who police said was driving the boat, Cynthia Averitt, has been charged with boating under the influence.

The North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources was in charge of the search, and were helped by the Charlotte Fire Department as well as the York County Sheriff’s Office.

In the past few months, at least seven people have drowned in area lakes -- one in the same area where crews were called to Wednesday.

On July 1, Lester Cook drowned while performing contract work on a dock on Lake Wylie. Investigators said he fell in the water and never came back up.

That same day, David Napper also disappeared on Lake Wylie near the Buster Boyd Bridge. Witnesses said his boat stalled, then he tried to swim to shore.

His body was found the next day.

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