Employee drowns in reservoir, officials say
By Jonathan Ayestas
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TUOLUMNE COUNTY, California (KCRA) — An employee with the Turlock Irrigation District drowned over the weekend while on duty at the Don Pedro Reservoir, officials said Monday.
The Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office said its deputies went to the lake near Moccasin Point around 11:37 a.m. Sunday for a report of a drowning. There, they had learned that 62-year-old Mitchell Rogers had gone under the water while swimming a rope out to a drifting boat, but he never resurfaced.
Deputies spoke with witnesses who showed them where Rogers was last seen, the sheriff’s office said. Those witnesses said Rogers was trying to retrieve an unattended boat drifting in the bay when he went underwater.
The sheriff’s office said its boating unit searched the area and found Rogers’ body underwater after a search that lasted more than two hours. Dive team members with the agency recovered the body and confirmed it was Rogers.
A spokesperson with the Turlock Irrigation District confirmed the person who drowned Sunday was a seasonal employee with the organization.
Rogers died while on duty, a statement from Turlock Irrigation read.
“Our thoughts and condolences are with the employee’s loved ones and colleagues during this difficult time,” the statement went on to say. “The safety and well-being of our employees is our top priority, and we are cooperating fully with the appropriate parties as they review the circumstances surrounding this tragic event.”
The sheriff’s office said Rogers was not wearing a lifejacket at the time.
Next of kin have been notified, and the sheriff’s office said the official cause of death will be based on an autopsy.
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