We’ve Lost One of Our Own

Looks like we’ve lost one of our own, a bass fisherman and a war vet: The body of Florida bass fisherman Christopher Hill was found yesterday on the bank of the St. Lucie River. Here’s what happened, according to tcpalm.com:

> Officials had been searching the area for the 39-year-old Vero Beach resident since he was ejected from a boat Monday afternoon.

> Crews from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and other agencies had continued their search Wednesday morning [today] for the 39-year-old professional bass angler after boaters pulled his friend Amy Reede, 38, out of the water Monday afternoon.

> Reede, of Ohio, was rescued by a couple returning from a fishing trip after they spotted a small, unmanned Boston Whaler spinning fast in tight circles near the Evans Crary Bridge, which links Stuart and Sewall’s Point.

> Reede told her rescuers Hill had been hit by the propeller, losing an arm before drifting away. She recounted the ordeal that she and Hill went through: “First he was driving and we were approaching the bridge and he went to put it into slowdown neutral because we were getting into a slow zone. And the next thing I know, I woke up and I was trying to find the top of the water.”

> Hill, a 1991 graduate of Okeechobee High School, served in the U.S. Marine Corps during Desert Storm and the conflict in Somalia…. Hill was active in the county recreation leagues as a coach for his son’s youth football team. “He’s my best friend and my role model,” said his son, Shea Hill, 14, of Vero Beach.

Chris apparently fished several BASS and FLW circuits, and according to this web page was sponsored by Triton, Evinrude, Shimano, Pro Angler’s Edge and Secret Weapon Lures.

Please say a few words to the Big Man on behalf of Chris and his family.