Lake rescue aided by loaner life jacket
The efforts of a LakeHartwell corps ranger and bystander saved the lives of two boys after the pair struggled to swim from a remote buoy to the beach shoreline. The incident occurred June 3 near the Singing Pines Recreation Area in OconeeCounty when park ranger Tim Crabtree noticed a dangerous situation and motioned for the pair to return to safe waters. When one of the boys became winded as he tried to swim to shore, the two retreated to an anchored float. Crabtree prepared to deliver loaner vests to the boys. Another swimmer, Alexandria Gunter, offered to deliver the life vests to the stranded swimmers. Gunter said the impromptu rescue took nearly 20 minutes. Of late, park rangers have seen an increase in life jacket use. So far this season, LakeHartwell officials count three water-related fatalities—including the 4th of July drowning of 21-year old Odell Gaither. He died of complications of drowning after jumping off a dock. Gaither, who was not wearing a life jacket, was underwater for nearly 10 minutes before bystanders noticed him.