Search for missing person enters third day

BROOKFIELD — Patrol vessels and divers scoured the waters on Tuesday, searching for a person who went missing on Candlewood Lake over Memorial Day weekend.

The individual was on a vessel when they went into the water on Sunday evening, according to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Crews suspended the search later that night and resumed it Monday morning, before calling it off before nightfall on Monday evening and restarting on Tuesday morning.

Brookfield First Selectwoman Tara Carr said she’s in “constant contact” with everyone involved in the search, and “work is still underway to recover the individual who’s suspected to have drowned.”

“It’s such a tragedy,” she said. “Safety should always be paramount on the water and unfortunately people forget that.”

The incident comes days after a 76-year-old man was pulled from the waters on Thursday evening after he had been working on his boat on Candlewood Lake. Police announced on Friday that he had died.

In the latest incident, Carr said it’s her understanding that the person went underwater in front of the Candlewood Inn.

DEEP spokesperson Will Healey said the vessel was not underway at the time of the incident, meaning it was docked, beached or aground. He could not be reached for further comment on Tuesday.

The missing individual has not yet been identified, but Carr said she believes they were from out of town.

State and local authorities have been called in to help with the search, and DEEP has asked boaters to avoid the area of where the search is being conducted.

In addition to DEEP EnCon, Danbury Fire, Candlewood Lake Authority, Brookfield police, Danbury police, and the Connecticut State Police Dive Team all assisted as of Sunday.