A father drowned while trying to save his daughters from a pond in Maine on Saturday, according to the Maine Surveillance Service.
Henry Brooks, 46, of Hope she was at Seven Tree Pond in the town of Union with her family around 4:30 p.m. Saturday watching her daughters, ages 12 and 13, swim in the water.
When one of her daughters fell into the deep water where the river enters the pool, the other daughter tried to rescue her but fell into the deeper water herself.
Both girls were swept by currents into an even deeper part of the pond, the Maine Life Surveillance Service said.
Brooks jumped into the water to try to rescue his daughters. His 27-year-old daughter also jumped in with a life jacket.
“The son was able to swim to his sisters and bring them back to safety at a nearby pier, but when he looked back for his father, he could not find him,” the watchdog service said in a statement.
Wardens along with Union Fire and Rescue and the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene to search the pond on foot and by boat, but were unable to find Brooks.
Later, three service divers were called to the pond and found Brooks around 7:30 p.m. according to the warden’s service.
Brooks was taken to a funeral home in Waldoboro and his children were taken to a local medical center where they remained for observation Saturday night.
So far the status of his daughters is unknown.
