LOUDON COUNTY, Tenn. — UPDATE (8 p.m. Friday): The TWRA said they recovered the body of Jamie L. Rixie at around 4 p.m. Friday afternoon downstream from the Ferry Street boat ramp, near the railroad bridge.
They said his body was found by a person after it resurfaced around half a mile downstream from where his boat was first found.
--
A search was underway at Watts Bar Lake for a missing fisherman after an overturned boat was reported near Loudon on Wednesday night, according to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
By Thursday at around 10 p.m., the TWRA said the search turned into a recovery effort. They said the man's name is Jamie L. Rixie, 57 years old. He is from Loudon.
TWRA said that search and rescue crews from Loudon County were searching for the man after a capsized aluminum boat was found in Watts Bar Lake just upstream of the Highway 11 bridge.
They said a boating accident investigator and officers will examine it for damage or other clues about what happened to cause it to capsize. They said they also hope to find electronics on board, like a fishfinder or a GPS, that could help them find the body of Rixie.
The overturned boat was reported just before 9 p.m. although it is unclear when and exactly where the angler possibly went overboard, TWRA said. Crews were expected to use side scan sonar technology on Friday and a remote-operated vehicle to try and find Rixie's remains.
According to a press release, the storm that came through the area on Wednesday evening may have contributed to the incident.
The investigation is still ongoing.