Body of Missing Louisiana Firefighter Recovered from Intracoastal Canal in St. Martin Parish

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 02.21.13

Search and rescue officials recovered the body of a Walker man from the Intracoastal Canal in St. Martin Parish today shortly after 12 p.m., Feb. 21.

Search crews from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Division, Baton Rouge Fire Department, Ascension Parish Fire Department, Gonzales Fire Department, St. Martin Sheriff’s Office, St. Mary Sheriff’s Office, Assumption Sheriff’s Office, Belle River Volunteer Fire Department, Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office, East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, Baton Rouge Port Security, and volunteers from Texas and Michigan have been searching for Jacob P. Lewis, 28, since Jan. 30.

Authorities were notified that Lewis, a Baton Rouge firefighter, fell into the Intracoastal Canal near Belle River while loading his boat. According to his wife, Lewis and she were out scouting for possible crawfish trap locations on Jan. 30.

Search crews utilized sonar, dive teams, cadaver dogs, and aerial and surface search techniques during the search and rescue period.

Lewis’ body was turned over to the St. Martin Parish Coroner’s Office to determine a cause of death. LDWF will be the lead investigative agency for this boating incident.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.