Dateline: October 9, 2003

Hereford man drowns when boat capsizes

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

The drowning of a Hereford man at Lake Greenbelt over the weekend has been ruled an accident, according to Sheriff Butch Blackburn.

Ricardo Orta, age 36, was fishing Saturday near Kincaid Park with his brother and nephew when one of the men apparently leaned over too far and capsized their 12-foot johnboat.

Fifty-two-year-old Noe Orta of Hereford and 32-year-old Noe Orta, Jr., of Amarillo both managed to swim to shore, but the third man did not make it.

The Donley County Sheriff’s Office received the call at 2:28 p.m. and dispatched EMS personnel and the Clarendon Volunteer Fire Department Dive Team. Orta’s body was recovered 400 feet from shore at 3:41 p.m.

An autopsy was conducted Monday in Lubbock, which found no signs of foul play and gave the preliminary cause of death as accidental drowning.

Blackburn said all three men had been drinking, but none were intoxicated. None of the men were wearing life vests.

“I think the problem was [Orta] was wearing lace-up steel-toed boots in 12 feet of water that’s full of moss,” Blackburn said.

The sheriff commended the CVFD Dive Team for their efforts.

“I figured we would be dragging [the lake], but they recovered him quickly,” Blackburn said. “That’s two people they have recovered for us, and they have done an excellent job.”

Dive team members participating Saturday were Kyle Hill, Kelly Hill, and Buddy Howard.