Body of 55-year-old Fort Myers Beach drowning victim’s name released
The name of the 55-year-old Fort Myers Beach victim who drowned in Matanzas Pass earlier in the week has finally been released, as reaching his next of kin was more difficult, since he lived on a sailboat and did not have a regular address or emergency contact information.
His name is Jerry Roger Barker, DOB 7/29/55, from Fort Myers Beach.
Barker’s body was recovered at 2:30 Tuesday morning after he fell into the water and disappeared beneath the surface off Mantanzas Pass.
The Fort Myers Beach man was reported to be “socializing and drinking with two friends on a 31-foot tri-catamaran last night in Matanzas Pass, when the now-deceased stepped off the boat to get onto an 8-foot dingy to go to his boat, lost his balance, which caused the dingy to fill with water, resulting in him going overboard. He fell into the water, disappeared, and his friends lost sight of him, contacting the authorities soon after,” according to Joy Hill, Public Information Coordinator with the Florida Fish and Wildlife, who received the report at 10:30 last night.
He was found by the searchers floating face down at 2:30 this morning. The U.S. Coast Guard, Lee County Sheriff’s Office and local EMS, fire and rescue sources were involved.
As a safety note, Hill is sure to state, “We talk about this all the time. A lot of the accidents we investigate, the people could probably still be alive if they were wearing a life preserver.”