FORT SMITH, Ark. – The bodies of a father and son, whose kayaks were found in an Arkansas lake in March, have been recovered from the lake nearly a month after the pair went missing, authorities reported Sunday.
Charles “Chuck” Morris V, and his son Charles “Charley” Morris IV, were on spring break when they went missing March 16 on Beaver Lake in the Ozark mountains of northwest Arkansas.
Chuck Morris, 47, was the drummer for the band Lotus based in Denver, while Charley, 20, was a student at Ohio Wesleyan University. The pair had not been seen since their disappearance on March 16 while on a family spring break trip to Beaver Lake.
24 days of search efforts
After 24 days of recovery efforts, the bodies were recovered “thanks to the technology and efforts by all personnel,” the Benton County Sheriff’s Office reports.
The search involved authorities from multiple states and underwater technology used at depths of more than 180 feet, the sheriff’s office reported.
“Our heart goes out the family of Chuck and Charley Morris and we are thankful today that we can help bring closure,” a Benton County sheriff’s office post reads.
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Father-son pair went missing on family vacation
The father and son went missing after going kayaking in the Lost Bridge area of the lake east of Rogers near Lost Bridge Village.
Charley, a college sophomore from Kansas City, Missouri, went out on the lake with his fathe before a storm March 16, according to the Kansas City Star. Charley and Chuck were on the lake while Charley’s mother, Jennifer Thompson, and his sister, Amelia, 12, went into town.
That afternoon, when the pair didn’t come back as expected, Thompson and Amelia searched for their family members before reporting them missing to authorities.
Remembrances from OWU, Lotus
On March 21, Ohio Wesleyan posted Charley’s photo on its Instagram account, stating that the university community was “heartbroken” after authorities collected strong evidence the student and his father drowned.
“He will be remembered for his love for his family and the outdoors, his talent as a runner in cross country and track, his service as a Bishop Scholar tutor in local elementary schools, his dedication to his classwork, and his participation with OWU’s chamber orchestra,” said Ohio Wesleyan President Rock Jones in a message to campus. “Most of all, he will be remembered at OWU as a beloved friend.”
“Thank you all for the outpour of support from around the world – we feel it and love you just as much!” the band Lotus, which identifies its genre as “jam/electronica/house,” posted on its Instagram Sunday. “We look forward to meeting many of the Lotus fans at the upcoming benefit concerts in Denver, Harrisburg, and New York.”
“While we are deeply grieving, we plan to celebrate Chuck and Charley’s lives, our memories with them, and what they meant to so many people,” the band said in a previous post.
Contributing: Danae King, Columbus Dispatch; Jay Cannon, USA TODAY