COUNCIL BLUFFS – An Omaha, Neb. woman was injured Saturday evening after being thrown off a personal watercraft on Lake Manawa and law enforcement officers are seeking assistance from the public in locating the operator of the vessel who left the scene.
Laura Goodburn, 29, was the passenger on a personal watercraft when she was thrown off at approximately 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the middle of the lake toward the south end. She was taken to Alegent Health Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs where she was complaining of a neck injury.
Both Goodburn and a friend she was with, Justin Smith of Omaha, Neb., told law enforcement officers they did not know the identity of the personal watercraft operator.
The operator of the personal watercraft is described as a white, middle-aged male, approximately 6-feet tall, average weight and with short red, blonde or gray hair. At the time of the incident, he was wearing an O’Neill life jacket. The personal watercraft was described as being orange, black and gold. Law enforcement officers searched the lake and boat ramps but were unable to find a vessel fitting that description.
Conservation officers and park rangers from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources are continuing to investigate the incident. Anyone who witnessed the incident or has information on the identity of the personal watercraft operator is asked to call DNR Law Enforcement Supervisor Brian Smith at 712-254-0550.