Kayaker drowns in Lake Norman

CORNELIUS, N.C. – As the water warms up, authorities are warning swimmers to be cautious out on the lake. A man drowned in Lake Norman Wednesday afternoon near Henderson Road.

Authorities say the man was out on a kayak when somehow he went under the water and never resurfaced alive. Authorities say when they arrived around 3pm the man was already under the water and crews started the recovery mission. He was found in less than an hour.

Mark Starnes learned his neighbor and friend drowned while out on a kayak behind the Windward community.
“We played in it all the time here, in the pool, in the lake. We’re all lake people,” Starnes said.

Starnes says the victim was a father and husband who died doing what he loved.

“He was a character, let me say that,” Starnes said. “He was a really good guy with a big heart, a little brash at times but nothing wrong with that.”

As the weather warms up and more people spend time at the lake, police warn swimmers of all abilities should be cautious.

“We try to educate everybody in the water, everybody at boat landings we come in contact with,” Lt. Tracey Crosby from Cornelius PD said. “Use boater safety and use your personal flotation device.”

Starnes still has questions about how his friend’s life ended on the water.

“He was raised on the water, been around water all his life, but I guess that doesn’t matter,” Starnes said.

The medical examiner will determine the victim’s cause of death. His name has not been released at this time.