The body of a missing swimmer was found in 6 feet of water in a Colorado lake, rangers said.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife
The body of a missing swimmer was found in 6 feet of water in a Colorado lake, rangers said.
A team of rangers from Colorado Parks and Wildlife and divers from the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office recovered the swimmer’s body late Saturday, June 15, the agency said in a June 16 news release.
Witnesses who saw the swimmer go under reported them missing about 8:15 p.m. off the north shore of Lake Pueblo State Park, west of the dam, officials said in the release.
Rangers used a sonar device and an underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV) equipped with lights and a camera to try to locate the swimmer, officials said.
Volunteer divers from the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office launched off the Sailboard Beach area west of the dam to help the rescue effort, officials said. The team then searched for the swimmer in a grid pattern and dove to investigate several objects for about three hours.
Divers located the swimmer’s body about 75 feet from shore in 6 feet of water around 11 p.m., officials said.
Lake Pueblo State Park is about a 50-mile drive south from Colorado Springs. It includes 60 miles of shoreline, more than 4,600 surface acres of water and almost 10,000 acres of land used for recreational fishing, hiking, camping and swimming.
Information about the swimmer’s identity or what may have caused the drowning was not available. The Pueblo County Coroner will identify the swimmer and determine what caused their death, officials said.
Joe Stadterman, the state park’s manager, reminded people to wear life jackets around water.
“We hate seeing a life lost so tragically,” he said. “This is another sad example of the importance of wearing life jackets when you are in or even near the water.”
It is the 19th water-related death in Colorado in 2024, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s unofficial tally, officials said. There were 32 water-related deaths in Colorado in 2023.
The record for water-related deaths is 42 in 2022, officials said.
Drowning
At least 4,000 people die from drowning every year in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and drowning is a leading cause of death for children.
Some factors can make drowning more likely, including not knowing how to swim, a lack of close supervision, not wearing a life jacket and drinking alcohol while recreating near or in water.
The National Drowning Prevention Alliance said there are tips to help keep you safe in the water, including checking local weather conditions, never swimming alone and choosing the right equipment.
“Don’t hesitate to get out of the water if something doesn’t feel right,” the group said on its website. “Whether it’s that the current is getting rough, rain has started to fall, or your body is just not responding like you would like it to due to fatigue or muscle cramps, then just leave and return to the water another day. It’s always a good thing to trust your instincts.”