Utah man drowns in Blackfoot Reservoir

A 76-year-old Hyrum, Utah man drowned in Blackfoot Reservoir at around 2:35 p.m. Tuesday. Caribou County Sheriff Ric Anderson identified the man as Kendall Lee Atkinson.

Anderson said three other Utah men were trolling the lake around 1:30 p.m. and saw Atkinson fishing from his boat. When they returned about an hour later, they saw Atkinson’s 18 foot aluminum boat going around in circles.

They found his body floating in the lake about 100 yards from the west shore of the reservoir about a quarter mile south of Cinder Island. They pulled his body out of the water and contacted the sheriff’s office.

Anderson said there were three personal floatation devices in the boat. Atkinson was not wearing one. An automatic kill switch to the motor was not connected.

Anderson encourages boaters to use life jackets and avoid venturing out onto the water by themselves.