Teenage swimmer drowns at Lake Sinclair

A 17-year-old youth drowned in Lake Sinclair over the weekend, authorities said.

Andre Mason Jr., who lived in the area, went missing Sunday afternoon after swimming with friends at Rocky Creek on Lake Sinclair, on the southeast side of the lake. Authorities found his body late Monday morning.

Mason was last seen removing his life jacket, said Georgia Department of Natural Resources Sgt. Bo Kelly.

“All we know at this point was that he took his life jacket off, and it was well known that he wasn’t that good of a swimmer,” Kelly said. “At some point while taking the jacket off, he disappeared under the water and they were not able to get him back.”

Representatives of the Georgia DNR, Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office, Baldwin County Fire and Rescue and the Georgia State Patrol dive team searched late into Sunday night without finding Mason. They resumed their search at 8 a.m. Monday and about 11 a.m. divers located Mason’s body about 25 feet from the dock, Kelly said.

All swimmers should wear life jackets at the lake, Kelly said.

The last fatal drowning at Lake Sinclair happened last summer. Two children under the age of 6 drowned in separate incidents.

On Saturday, another swimmer nearly drowned at the Rocky Creek park, but his girlfriend revived him.

This story was originally published June 6, 2016 at 1:11 PM with the headline "Teenage swimmer drowns at Lake Sinclair."