ALLEMANSVILLE- A 19-year-old Houtzdale man drowned accidentally Saturday afternoon in the pond behind the Wopsononock Boy Scout Dam in Gulich Township, Clearfield County, according to officials.
Dylan S. Keith was trying to swim across the pond on a path that was about 100 yards long, according to state police and Bill McKinney, EMT from Houtzdale-Ramey Ambulance.
He called for help about 20 yards from safety, at which point a "good Samaritan" tried to rescue him, according to coroner Mike Morris.
They both went under, and after a long time, she got free and came back to the surface, but he didn't, Morris said.
There will be an autopsy today to check for underlying health problems, which may be likely, because Keith was an avid swimmer and kayaker, according to Morris.
One possibility is mild heat exhaustion, he suggested.
That might have been present, even if the water had felt cool, because of dehydration due to lost fluids, he said.
Keith was at the pond with family, according to Morris.
He didn't know whether the good Samaritan was a member of his party.
Others who were riding on "pontoon" floats went to the spot where Keith went down, but couldn't find him, McKinney said.
He sank in water that was more than 15 feet deep - too deep for 15-foot grappling hooks to touch bottom, McKinney said.
Family members and friends gathered outside the gate of the lake area in the aftermath.
Some were crying, and some were hugging those who were crying.
Divers from Curwensville Water rescue and Jackson East Taylor Water Rescue Team found the body, and Morris pronounced Keith dead, according to state police.
The water was "murky," McKinney said.
Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 949-7038.
