20-year-old man drowns in Lake Keowee

A 20 year-old Pickens County man drowned late Tuesday afternoon in Lake Keowee in Oconee County, officials said.

Oconee County Emergency Services said a dive team and other first responders were called to Fall Creek Landing – a peninsula known to locals as “The Rock” – just before 6 p.m.

Officials said three people, two males and a female, were swimming out to an island from the peninsula when the victim called out for help.

A 13-year-old boy tried to rescue the man without success and the victim was last seen going under the lake’s surface.

Divers recovered the victim at 6:10 p.m. from an estimated water depth of 25 feet.

Life support was started and the victim was taken to a waiting EMS unit, where resuscitation efforts were stopped at 6:30 pm.

The drowning victim was identified as Micheal Kevin Pruitt, 20, of Six Mile. His family reported he could swim, authorities said.

No autopsy will be conducted and the death has been ruled accidental, officials said. In accordance with South Carolina law, specimens will be submitted to SLED for toxicology analysis, they said.

Also assisting in the recovery operation were officers from the S.C. Department of Natural Resources and the Oconee County Sheriff’s Department.

From Staff Reports

This story was originally published August 25, 2015 at 9:03 PM.