Search Launched for Missing Boaters in Lake Eloise After Anchor Error

Police in Florida are searching for two men amid fears they drowned while trying to save a woman who got into difficulties in choppy water as she attempted to tie an anchor to her rental boat.

The alarm was raised by a 10-year-old girl, who was left alone with her 8-year-old sister on the ski boat on Lake Eloise in Winter Haven, following the incident on Saturday.

The woman, 38-year-old Velcky Velasquez, was found by deputies treading water near the boat. She told police she had jumped into the lake to fix an anchor to the boat but had been separated from the craft by the current and the heavy wind.

Her boyfriend, Orlando Ortiz, 32, and a friend, Jeffrey Marrero, jumped in to help her but were not strong swimmers and went underwater, according to police.

At a press conference on Sunday, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said officers were still searching for the men and would continue until they were found.

According to the police, the incident happened at around 4 pm on Saturday, March 18, while the group was enjoying a boat trip to celebrate Ortiz and Velasquez's one-year anniversary of being together.

During the press conference, Judd said: "They are out having an afternoon of pleasure on the water. There is a rough day on the water, the wind is blowing about 20 miles per hour, there is a 2-foot chop, it is a breezy afternoon.

"They decide that they will anchor out in the middle of Lake Eloise, at that time, Miss Velazquez takes the anchor and jumps into the water, the anchor rope is not tied to the boat. She's just very inexperienced, so she thinks that you have to get into the water, put the anchor in, and then tie it to the boat. Immediately, the engine's off and the boat starts to float away.

"At that point in time, they see she is struggling so the two gentlemen jump into the lake in order to save her. When they jump into the lake, the boat is continuing to move away so they start to swim toward the boat."

Judd noted that the authorities were told the two men were average swimmers while Velazquez was said to be a better swimmer.

He continued: "At some point in time when they can't catch the boat, Miss Velazquez says she sees them struggling to stay above the water. She starts to float and the boat is now moving further away."

In a press release, police say that Marrero's two daughters, aged 8 and 10, were left stranded alone on the 16-ft Lake Tahoe ski boat and the 10-year-old called 911 to report the incident.

After the call, deputies asked a fisherman to use his boat in order to get to the scene as quickly as possible. The deputies were able to save Velazquez, who was found still floating in the water.

The boat had continued into a more swamp-like area and a deputy dived into the water in order to swim to the boat and rescue the children.

Judd said the group had taken a class before they could rent a boat because they were inexperienced and they passed the course. He praised the young girl's quick action to call the police and inform them about the situation. He added: "We are there, we are involved, we are searching for these two missing gentlemen as if they were our brothers or our children and will continue to do so."

Carrie Horstman, the Polk County Media Relations Administrator, directed Newsweek to a press release. She said: "We are still searching for them."