The search for missing actress Naya Rivera continues, with no sign of the “Glee” star after she disappeared on Lake Piru almost 48 hours ago.
Captain Eric Buschow from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office held a media briefing on Friday, telling reporters that the search began at 6 a.m. on Friday and that investigators used sonar equipment to scan the bottom of the lake for anything that looks like a body. While they have found some promising objects, Rivera’s body has yet to be found.
Visibility remains very low in the reservoir lake and the bottom is filled with trees and weeds that could cause entanglements to the divers. The teams are continuing to search the north and eastern parts of the two-mile-long lake, which is, at its deepest, 130 feet deep. Cadaver dogs are searching the top of the water, and once they find something, a diver will check the location — however, the dogs have not detected anything yet.
Lake Piru is scheduled to be drained to 65 feet next month to perform “seismic retrofitting on the lake’s dam,” which was a project that was planned before the search began.
While sergeant Kevin Donoghue on Thursday said that there are no microcurrents in the lake, Buschow on Friday said that water coming from Pyramid Lake nearby and winds picking up in the afternoon could cause something like a whirlpool in certain parts of the lake.
Authorities say Rivera and her son departed from the dock around 1:00 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. She was swimming with her 4-year-old son when, for unknown reasons, she submerged and did not resurface, Captain Eric Buschow of the Ventura County Sheriff’s department told TheWrap.
On Thursday, the search and rescue operation shifted to a recovery one, with a Ventura County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson saying, “We believe a tragic accident happened and she may have lost her life in the lake.”
In a press conference later in the day on Thursday, Kevin Donoghue, sergeant at the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, said that Naya Rivera’s 4-year-old son, who was found alone on the boat in the middle of the lake, told investigators enough information that made them “conclude that his mother never made it out of the water.”
Naya Rivera currently appears in the recurring role of Collette Jones on the “Step Up” series adaptation, which previously aired on YouTube Red and will air on Starz for its upcoming third season. Her other credits include “Devious Maids,” “The Bernie Mac Show” and “American Dad.”