Calif. man, 82, drowns in Lake Tahoe

TAHOE CITY, Calif. - A family trip to Lake Tahoe turned tragic this weekend when an 82-year-old man fell into the water and drowned.

According to the Placer County Sheriff's Office, Robert Clyde Cook, 82, of Sacramento, was shuttling friends and family between a boat and the shore on a inflatable Zodiac watercraft at about 3:45 p.m. Saturday near the 700 block of West Lake Boulevard when the Zodiac capsized, and Cook, who was not wearing a life vest, was unable to swim to safety.

"It was witnessed by the decedent's friend, who flagged someone down to call," said PCSO Sgt. John Giovannini.

Giovannini said the sheriff's office and U.S. Coast Guard boats responded.

A Tahoe Regional Planning Agency diver brought Cook up, Giovannini said, and North Tahoe Fire Protection District paramedics attempted to revive him, but he was declared dead at the scene. The incident took place in about 10 feet of water.

The death appears to be an accidental drowning, pending an autopsy, Giovannini said. He said the lake's conditions on Saturday afternoon were windy, with some choppy waves.