BUXTON, Maine — Maine officials have recovered the body of a male teenager who drowned near Salmon Falls in Buxton Friday.
Steel Crawford, 17, of Freeport was swimming with friends at Pleasant Point Park in Buxton the afternoon of August 9, according to Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Communications Director Mark Latti.
Latti said Crawford was swinging on a rope swing, and after he let go, he landed "awkwardly" in the deep water and never came back up.
Around 7:30 p.m. after an hours-long search, officials told NEWS CENTER Maine that Crawford's body had been recovered where they thought he might be -- near the rope swing he had swung off of.
Crawford's body was spotted at 6:03 p.m. and pulled out of about 50-foot-deep water by Maine Game Warden Bruce Loring at 7:08 p.m.
Game wardens spent most of Friday afternoon searching in an area down river of the Route 202 bridge and upriver of the Skelton Dam. The water is more than 50 feet deep in this region.
Game wardens searched by foot on the shore and by boat on the water. Drones also searched by air, alongside a Maine Warden Service plane -- but game wardens said sun reflection and ripplesmade it difficult to see deep into the water.
Latti said Maine Warden Service divers were expected to search the river in a press release sent out around 4:13 p.m.
The search happened not far from Salmon Falls, which is a popular swimming destination for locals.
In a press conference at 4:30 p.m., Buxton police chief Troy Cline stressed the importance of safety when it comes to using the couple of rope swings at the park.
"Use them with the upmost care," Cline stressed. "There's nothing saying you can't come back and hit the shore or hit some rocks and what not. Most of the under water terrain in this area is ledge that drops off. I would just ask that when you come to this park, be respectful of the park, and know what you need to do to stay safe."
Cline added that he suggested taking the swings down -- but he expects they will go back up, since "that's what the kids always do".
"We can only police it so much," Cline said.
Cline said the area has seen incidents in the past, regarding the use of alcohol in the park. He added that "doesn't appear to be the case at all" in Friday's incident.
Buxton Police Department, Buxton Fire Department, Saco Fire Department, Standish fire Department, York County EMA, Kennebunk Fire Department, Goodwin Mills Fire Department, Hollis Fire Department and Maine State Police assisted game wardens.
This story will be updated as more information becomes made available.