DEAD RIVER TOWNSHIP, Maine — Maine Game Wardens are searching in and around Flagstaff Lake for a missing York woman who hasn’t been seen since she and two friends overturned their canoe on the lake Saturday night, September 19.
Throughout Saturday night and through Sunday, Game Wardens have been searching for the woman.
On Sunday, Maine Warden Service divers searched the lake, a Game Warden pilot searched from the air, and Maine Game Warden K9 units searched along the shore. The Maine Warden Service plans to resume searching Monday morning.
According to Maine Game Wardens, the accident happened around 5:20 p.m. on Saturday. They say two men, a woman, and their dog were canoeing to their campsite on Flagstaff Lake when their canoe overturned.
After the canoe flipped, the occupants (who were not wearing life jackets) grabbed their life jackets and began to swim to shore. The two men and the dog made it to shore, and started looking across the lake, but could not see or find the woman. The two men who were already hypothermic started hiking out to the road to find help. After an hour’s walk, they were able to get help and call 9-1-1 at approximately 8:55 Saturday. The Maine Warden Service responded and started searching at 10:00 p.m.
The name of the missing woman is being withheld until family can be notified of the search. The Maine Warden Service has set up a command post for the search at the Long Falls Dam in Dead River Township on Gateway Road. The Maine Warden Service has been assisted in the search by the New Portland Fire Department and Maine Search and Rescue Dogs (MESARD).