Photo: Summit County Sheriff's Office
Authorities have recovered the body of a paddleboarder who was blown into the water by a sudden storm in Colorado.
The Summit County Sheriff's Office says they got a 911 call from Dillon Reservoir, which is 70 miles west of Denver, on July 16. Deputies learned the male victim was "blown off" his board after getting caught in a microburst that afternoon.
The National Weather Service describes a microburst as a sudden blast of air that can generate tornado-level gusts. They typically happen during thunderstorms and can be life-threatening.
"The group saw the approaching storm and was heading back to the Dillon Marina when it suddenly came over them," the sheriff's office wrote on Facebook. "The rain, winds, and large waves created by the microburst, separated the group."
Search and rescue teams ended up finding the victim's body 100 yards offshore from the Robert Tunnel shoreline later that night.
"He was unable to keep his head above the water. The victim was presumed drowned," a follow-up Facebook post noted.
The county coroner's office identified the victim as 25-year-old Miguel Mendez of Englewood.
Witnesses told officials there was a floatation device strapped to his paddleboard, but he wasn't wearing it at the time of the incident. Now, authorities are stressing to the public the importance of wearing life jackets following the tragedy.
"I can answer that with 100% certainty with a lifejacket on, he would have survived. It would have kept his head above water, he was only 75 yards offshore and he was being blown towards shore," Kevin Kelble, a boat ranger with the Summity County Sheriff's Office, told CBS News. "With a life jacket he might have been panicked, he might have been terrified, but as long as his head was above water and he could breathe. Literally the wind would have blown him straight back to shore and we wouldn't be having this conversation right now."