Sheriff’s divers pulled the body of a San Jose man from Coyote
Reservoir Monday evening, nearly four hours after the man
disappeared, leaving his clothing and shoes on the shore.
Gilroy – Sheriff’s divers pulled the body of a San Jose man from Coyote Reservoir Monday evening, nearly four hours after the man disappeared, leaving his clothing and shoes on the shore.
Two fishermen reported the man missing to park rangers about 1:30pm Monday. The three had planned to go fishing, and strolled down the shoreline, seeking a good spot to cast their lines. About a mile and a half north of the ranger’s station, they found one: a spot Sheriff’s deputies called Angler’s Cove.
“He said, ‘it’s too hot today, I have to go swim,'” one fisherman reported, still frantic even after the body was found. He declined to give his name. “We told him, it’s not allowed for swimming. But he went.”
Shrugging, the two men returned to their SUV to retrieve their fishing poles, leaving the third to swim. When they returned, he was gone.
“It scared me to death,” the fisherman said, shaking his head under a floppy dark-blue hat. “I almost got heart attack. I don’t know how to talk. I don’t know this guy so well, so I think maybe he was joking. I called his name.”
But no one called back. The second fisherman jumped into the water and paddled in a panic, looking for the missing man. The swimmer was a friend-of-a-friend, a younger man the two men say they didn’t know well. When the two visited a friend’s house before fishing, the third man was sitting outside, and asked to join their fishing trip, the fisherman said.
“I say, of course. I cannot say no,” the fisherman explained. “We are Vietnamese.”
The victim’s name was not released by press time, pending family notification. Sheriff’s deputies described the victim as a Vietnamese-American man from San Jose in his mid-30s. When his body was found, he wore only his underwear.
As of press time, coroners had yet to determine the cause-of-death, or whether any specific factors caused the man to drown. There was no alcohol on scene, and no apparent foul play, said Sheriff’s spokesman Edward Wise. One fisherman carried a legitimate fishing license.
“It doesn’t appear suspicious at this point,” said Wise.
A CalFire helicopter surveyed the lake from the air, patrolling from north to south and back. At 2:30, the pilots radioed park rangers on the shore: No one matching the man’s description had been found. Sheriff’s deputies discussed whether a thermal imaging camera, which records heat and is often used in fires to locate a blaze’s source, could be used to locate the missing man; other emergency personnel responded that the heat emanating from the water would obscure the man’s body.
By 3pm, rescuers reported they had switched into recovery mode, though park ranger supervisor Ken Silveira cautioned that the search was still in-progress.
“We’ll go through everything,” said Silveira. “You always hope for the best.”
Silveira couldn’t remember the last time anyone had disappeared into Coyote Reservoir.
Rangers and deputies patrolled the shoreline as Sheriff’s divers plumbed the water Monday afternoon, dividing the lake into a searchable grid. Park staff closed Coyote Reservoir to additional visitors, to allow room for bulky emergency equipment on the park’s narrow roads. As fire engines and Sheriff’s cruisers sped through the tranquil park, hikers and fishermen already inside were puzzled.
“I’ve been wondering what’s going on,” said David Spetch, as he pulled his inflatable boat to shore Monday afternoon. Spetch had been fishing since 8am, and was bewildered when helicopters began circling the lake in mid-afternoon. “Besides that, it’s been pretty quiet.”
Swimming is banned in Coyote Reservoir by the Santa Clara Valley Water District, not due to any hazards, but because the reservoir’s water is ultimately used for drinking, said Silveira. Monday, the weather was clear, and winds were light.
As the fishermen braced themselves to identify the drowned man, one recalled the younger man’s words as they drove into the park, hours and one lifetime ago.
“He said, ‘Your music is so good,’ ” the fisherman remembered. “We’ll get a lot of fish today.”
