A father and his 5-year-old son, who went duck-hunting, went missing on Monday morning, Unfortunately, the father and son adventure turned into a tragedy when they were found dead. The bodies were recovered in Lake Tawakoni.
The father and son, who are from Quinlan, Texas, were identified as 25-year-old Corey Saunders and 5-year-old Nathan. Texas Game Warden Gary Miller said that they went duck-hunting on Monday but did not return in the evening so their family called the police to report that they were missing.
WFAA 8 reported search crews found the equipment of Saunders and his son as well as a hunting dog in the Caddo Arm of the lake at around 11 p.m. on Monday. The body of the boy was found on the surface area of the water.
The family dog, named Hunt, was the one who led the search crews to where Nathan was. According to the medical examiner, the child died due to accidental drowning.
On Tuesday morning, search crews went back to the site to search for Saunders. His body was recovered from the water at around 10:30 a.m. His body was found a few feet from where his child was recovered but the cause of death is yet to be determined.
Authorities who took part in the search efforts found the two in the water that was around eight feet deep. The father and the child were not wearing life jackets. Miller said that words cannot express the heartbreak that the situation brought to their family and the wardens who helped in the search.
The game wardens believe that the boat was overloaded with fishing gear and that strong storms during the time that the father and son went out might have been a factor since Lake Tawakoni is known to be a dangerous and rough lake, Fox 4 News reported. Capt. Steve Stapleton, who is with the Texas Game Warden's Office, said that he has been in the area for 17 years now and he described the lake as unforgiving and unpredictable.
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page was set up for the father and son. They were survived by Saunders' wife, who is also taking care of a newborn baby.
