Published: September 05, 2008 09:44 am         

Body found in Gulfport may have been storm victim

GULFPORT, Miss. — Harrison County authorities say a a man whose body was found in a Gulfport lake may have died as Hurricane Gustav’s winds lashed at the Gulf Coast.

Harrison County Coroner Gary Hargrove says the body was recovered Wednesday from Gulfport Lake.

Hargrove said that while positive identification is pending, the body is likely that of a missing shrimper from Saucier who tried to ride out the storm on a boat.

The said the missing man was aboard one of the shrimp boats that had evacuated to the back Industrial Canal. The man was last seen on early Monday.

Two other deaths in Mississippi have been blamed on Gustav, both involving traffic accidents.