Schenectady County man likely drowned after swimming several hundred feet from shore to reach capsized boat; second fatal incident in two weeks
BROADALBIN — A Schenectady County man is believed to have drowned Sunday evening after attempting to rescue his girlfriend from Great Sacandaga Lake, authorities said.
The woman was in the water when the inflatable boat she was in tipped over, Fulton County Sheriff Richard Giardino said. Two people in a pontoon saw the boat. Thinking it was empty, they came over to pick it up, only to find the woman clinging to it. They brought her back to shore, Giardino said.
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Man goes under during rescue attempt
Unbeknownst to them, the woman’s boyfriend was several hundred feet away, swimming from the shore to the boat, when he went under, Giardino said. Friends on shore made multiple 911 calls around 6:30 p.m. after they realized he never made it to his girlfriend.
The couple, both in their 20s and from Schenectady County, were not wearing life preservers, a preliminary investigation shows.
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Boat launch closed as authorities resume search with dive teams
Giardino said several agencies responded, with the State Police dive team searching the lake for around two hours. Giardino said his office’s search would resume at 8 a.m. Monday with assistance from the dive team and the Tri-County Swift Water Rescue Team. The town boat launch will be closed during the search. The sheriff asked that operators of boats and personal watercraft avoid the area.
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Tragedy marks second fatal water incident at lake in under two weeks
The incident occurred just shy of two weeks after a 21-year-old woman died after the personal watercraft she was riding on collided with a boat just north of the town boat launch. An investigation found her inexperience was a “major contributing factor” in the crash.
Grace Clark, a Texas native, was a graduate of Schalmont High School in Rotterdam. Survived by her parents and eight siblings, she was steadfast in her Christian faith and “will be remembered for her kindness, her thoughtfulness, and the quiet joy,” her obituary said.
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Photo at top: The Great Sacandaga Lake in Edinburg. Photo by Mike Lynch
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