A Huntington man lost his life in a drowning accident at Huntington Lake on June 6. He was swimming with friends in the Cove area of Huntington Lake. He was swimming from one point to the other when he became tired. His friends, two girls tried to swim to him, but were unable to hang onto him. They reached shore and called 911 at 2:31 p.m. State park ranger Larry Johansen and Deputy Kurt Price were on scene at the boat dock on another unrelated matter when the call came in. They immediately jumped in the state parks boat and raced across the lake. They were unable to locate the victim.
The Emery County Sheriff’s Office, and the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office divers were called on scene to attempt to rescue the swimmer. The Emery County Search and Rescue responded along with the Huntington and Cleveland fire departments. The state DPS boat arrived and the body was located and recovered at 9:50 p.m. He has been sent to the medical examiners office.
Sheriff LaMar Guymon said, “We would like to thank the state park rangers, our deputies, Carbon County personnel and all the many volunteers who aided in the search. Everyone was very cooperative including the boaters who were asked to clear the lake while the search was carried out. We want to thank the State boat for their rapid response in getting here and searching for the victim. Several citizens at the lake at the time volunteered their life jackets, boats and jet skis for the rescuers. We want to thank them for their help. The victim has been identified as Joseph Ray Hoover, age 20. He is formerly of Carbon County and recently moved to Huntington.
“We would like to encourage everyone as the boating and swimming season begins to exercise caution as they use the waters in our county. Wear life jackets and know your limitations. We are extremely upset when something like this happens in our community,” said Sheriff Guymon.
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