(Spirit Lake)– The man killed in an early morning hit-and-run boating collision on West Lake Okoboji has been identified as 51-year-old Michael Joseph Brosnahan of Perry. His wife, 50-year-old Jill Denise Brosnahan, was injured in the crash and was taken to a Sioux Falls hospital. There was no immediate word on her condition.
Authorities say the crash took place shortly before 2:00 this morning on the northwest side of West Lake Okoboji in front of Village West. The boat the Brosnahan’s were in was traveling north about 15 to 20 miles-per-hour when a second boat, also travelling north, came from behind and went over the top of the boat the Brosnahan’s were aboard.
Also on board along with the Brosnahan’s was 40-year-old William Brosnahan of Des Moines, who was operating the boat and is a brother of Michael Brosnahan. William Brosnahan’s wife, 43-year-old Elizabeth Ann, was also on board. The boat was owned by 37-year-old William Rizk of Dakota Dunes, South Dakota. Both he and his wife, 34-year-old Pamela Jo Rizk, were on board at the time of the crash. None of the other four was injured.
The DNR and Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office this afternoon continued an extensive search for the suspect boat, described as predominantly white with two red stripes about six to eight inches wide and one foot apart. The boat is believed to be an inboard/outboard about 22 feet long. Officials spent the day combing the shorelines for the boat, along with checking out campgrounds and parking lots throughout the area with no luck.
Anyone with any information on the incident or that may have seen a boat matching the above description should contact the Dickinson County Communications Center at 336-2525 or Gary Owen of the DNR at (712) 260-1018.
