A Salinas boy drowned Saturday morning in Lake Shasta in Shasta County, sheriff's officials said.
Personnel from the sheriff's boating unit received a call at 7:15 a.m. of a possible drowning on the McCloud River Arm of the lake near the Lake Shasta Caverns National Natural Landmark.
A Salinas couple was vacationing with their 7-year-old son on a houseboat. The boat had been beached, and the couple tried to leave when the boat wouldn't start, according to sheriff's officials.
As they were trying to fix it and make breakfast they left their son unattended.
When they didn't see him, they checked the boat and land, sheriff's officials said. Then the couple saw the boy's flip flops floating in the water near the back of the boat.
A sheriff's dive team searched the water near the back of the boat for about 30 minutes and found the boy's body at a depth of about 17 feet.
The boy was not wearing a life jacket and was not required to by law, according to sheriff's officials.
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But anyone recreating on or near the water is encouraged to wear a life jacket, sheriff's officials said.
