Boaters hamper search for missing boater near popular Lake Norman sandbar, rescuers say

UPDATE: The missing boater’s body was found late Saturday, July 6, in Lake Norman, searchers say. He was identified Miles Edward Merritt of Charlotte.

The original story is below.

Boaters are hampering the search for a fellow boater who went missing on the Fourth of July in Lake Norman, emergency responders said late Friday.

Boat traffic caused “tremendous wake” that made it “difficult to pick up any images on sonar due to the distortion in the images,” Cornelius-Lemley Fire Rescue officials said in an 8 p.m. update on X, the former Twitter.

“As we begin our search tomorrow, we ask that you PLEASE avoid the area of the Sandbar, near marker D4, and allow our boat crews to work,” the fire department post said.

The boater was identified as 27-year-old Miles Edward Merritt of Charlotte.

The search is focused on a popular spot known as The Sandbar, just west of Cornelius. Boaters have gathered each summer for decades to party in area.

Investigators have not reported when the person went missing, but alerts were posted on social media around 4:50 p.m. Thursday.

First responder crews from Mecklenburg, Lincoln and Iredell counties are participating in the search, officials said.

“We are urging all ... boaters to avoid the area around the sandbar near marker D4,” the Cornelius Police Department wrote in a July 5 Facebook post.

“It is crucial to keep the water as calm as possible to ensure our sonar equipment can be most effective in the ongoing search and rescue efforts.”

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission reports the disappearance is related to a “boat incident” that is under investigation.

Lake Norman covers more than 32,500 acres and has a maximum depth of 110 feet, officials said.

This story was originally published July 5, 2024 at 5:11 AM with the headline "Boaters hamper search for missing boater near popular Lake Norman sandbar, rescuers say."