2 days ago
Body of 36-year-old man recovered from Beaver Dam quarry in Baltimore County
The body of a 36-year-old man was recovered after a two-day search at the Beaver Dam Swim Club quarry in Baltimore County, according to fire officials.
Michael Randle was identified as the swimmer who went missing at the quarry in Cockeysville on Sunday.
Emergency responders were called around 6 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 17, to the 10,000 block of Beaver Dam Road, where a person had reportedly disappeared in the water and was unaccounted for, according to police.
The Baltimore County Fire Department (BCFD) reported that a swimmer, identified as a 36-year-old man, was seen struggling in the water and subsequently went under.
Dive teams searched the quarry on Sunday until conditions forced operations to be suspended. The search continued for hours on Monday before it was suspended.
The Baltimore City Police Department took over the recovery efforts on Tuesday, when the body was located.
Search crews were assisted by handheld sonar, recovery dogs, divers, and an underwater robot from the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue, BCFD stated.
Josh Bradds, who said he was visiting the quarry with his family on Sunday, told WJZ he was about to help a struggling swimmer when he saw lifeguards rush to the water.
A fire spokesperson said a lifeguard also saw the man struggling in the water, tried rescuing him, but couldn't find him in the water.
"I looked around and I saw four separate lifeguards on their way to him, and I was like, 'OK, he's getting saved,'" Bradds said. "You could even hear the people sigh when she pulled up. "You thought he was going to get saved, and he never came up."
There have been multiple drownings at the Beaver Dam Swim Club quarry over the past 20 years. The most recent drowning was in 2014.
Several people on social media shared concerns about the dangers of the quarry, citing other drownings.
WJZ reached out to the swim club for comment and has not heard back.
"It's weird. You really don't know how to feel. It feels fake," Bradds said. "Everybody out there is never going to forget this day. Like we just saw that man disappear."
