After a highly publicized search, country singer Craig Strickland was found dead, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol confirmed. Strickland was 29 years old.
The OHP confirmed to KHBS that Strickland’s body was found along the Kaw Lake shoreline, just north of where his boat capsized.
Strickland was reported missing after he wasn’t heard from when he and his friend, Chase Morland, went on a hunting trip on Dec. 26 during a powerful winter storm. Morland was found dead on Dec. 28. On Monday, the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office determined that Morland died from drowning and exposure to the freezing temperatures.
During the search for Strickland, his wife, Helen Wisner Strickland, chronicled the search on Instagram. Her latest post came on Sunday, when she thanked the search team for helping in 27-degree weather.
On Twitter, Helen thanked Strickland’s fellow country singer Justin Moore, who posted a heartfelt statement on New Year’s Day. “I want to express my sincerest, deepest sympathy for what the Strickland family has endured this past week,” Moore wrote.
E! News points out that Strickland’s band also asked fans to send their thoughts and prayers to Morland’s family.
A GoFundMe page to help Helen was also started on Friday. Since then, it has raised $9,000.