A Baxter County man died Thursday after his car went into Lake Norfork. The victim is identified as 31-year-old Darren M. Martin of Gamaliel. His body was recovered from a vehicle that ran off the causeway inside the Pigeon Creek Park and became submerged under water.
According to the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office, the victim’s mother called 9-1-1 at 12:43 Thursday afternoon saying her son’s car had gone into the lake, he was inside and needed help. The general location was the Pigeon Creek area of the lake, but a more precise location was not known.
Deputies and other emergency responders started searching for the vehicle but it was not visible from the road, so they started searching other access points of the lake as well. The sheriff’s office deployed their patrol boat, as did park rangers with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. The sheriff’s office helicopter was launched in the search as well. Numerous bridges and access points on the lake were also searched.
At approximately 1:55, a park ranger reported finding vehicle parts or debris near the causeway inside Pigeon Creek Park. Responders in a boat arrived shortly thereafter and confirmed a vehicle was in the water, about ten feet under, at that location.
A sheriff’s office diver arrived and recovered Martin’s body from the vehicle.
Baxter County Sheriff Montgomery made a post on Facebook Thursday afternoon commending the diver, whom he did not name, saying he left his father’s side who is in Hospice near the end of his life, to respond to the call for help at the scene.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI