LOWER BURRELL: At around 12:30 p.m. today, divers recovered the body of a 22-year-old man who drowned Sunday in a summer river outing.
The unidentified victim, believed to be from Ireland, was last seen by three friends Sunday evening as he swam out toward a buoy in the Allegheny River off Braeburn Beach, according to Citizens Hose Assistant Fire Chief J.R. Reynolds.
The victim's friends were a man and two women in their late teens to early 20s from the Etna area, Reynolds said.
Visibly shaken, the three witnesses did not want to speak to the media, but told officials that they were swimming closer to shore when they first lost sight of their friend, Reynolds said.
"He apparently went under once and bobbed back up and then went under again and bobbed up one more time," Reynolds said. "Then they didn't see him."
The original emergency call came into Harrison dispatch center at about 6:30 p.m.
River rescue crews spent two hours Sunday searching from Lock and Dam No. 4 at Natrona in Harrison to just below the Tarentum Bridge in hopes of finding the young man alive.
About eight scuba divers from Lower Burrell No. 2 (Braeburn), Citizens Hose in Harrison and Freeport were deployed from a staging area set up on Braeburn Beach, a popular swimming spot across from Allegheny Ludlum's Brackenridge Works.
Rescue crews from New Kensington and Eureka and Summit Hose companies in Tarentum also responded.
Zero visibility underwater meant the divers couldn't even see their hands in front of their faces and had to navigate their way across the muddy river bottom by touch only.
Fast-moving currents of about 30 mph -- perhaps due to the recent heavy rains -- also hampered rescue operations, Reynolds said. Water temperatures were reportedly about 70 degrees.
Crews also combed the river bottom using infrared cameras and by dragging long, metal hooks over the side of several boats that circled the waters in the area.
As the rescue operation proceeded on the river, emergency personnel searched the shoreline for about 600 to 1,000 yards downstream.
The state Fish and Boat Commission stopped all recreational boat traffic in a 2-mile radius around Braeburn Beach, Reynolds said.
A medical helicopter hovered just downriver from the bridge when clothing was seen in the water, but rescuers in boats determined it wasn't the victim's.
Around 8 p.m., after almost 2 hours of searching in the hot sun, Reynolds said the chances of successful rescue were significantly diminished, and the operation shifted into recovery mode.
About 15 minutes later, divers and boats discovered the victim's body just down river from Braeburn Beach.
Initial attempts to pull the victim from the river were unsuccessful, however, and his body disappeared again in the murky water.
Divers and boats were in the water for almost another hour until nightfall.
Due to unfavorable river conditions, exhausted recovery crews then postponed their search until 7 a.m. today to avoid risking further tragedy.
There were no signs that the four swimmers had been drinking alcohol Sunday evening, Reynolds said.
The three witnesses told officials that their friend was a capable swimmer who likely got caught in the unusually strong currents, he said.
"It looks calm on the top," Reynolds said. "But as we all know, the river is deadly. That's why we advise people not to swim in the water."
Eleven people have drowned in Alle-Kiski Valley rivers since 1997 -- 10 in the Allegheny and one in the Kiskiminetas.
Last July, a 14-year-old boy drowned after jumping off boat docks in Arnold. An 11-year-old Harrison boy also drowned last summer in the Kiski in Allegheny Township while trying to save his cousin.
The search-and-recovery was expanded today to take into account the flow of the river downstream, Reynolds said.
The body will be turned over to the Westmoreland County coroner's office for an autopsy, he said.
Additional Information:
River drownings since 1997
Including Sunday's death, 11 people have drowned in Valley rivers since 1997 -- 10 in the Allegheny, 1 in the Kiskiminetas.July 2002: A New Kensington boy, 14, jumped off of boat docks behind the former American-St. Gobain glass factory in Arnold.
April 2002: A Harrison boy, 11, drowned in the Kiski River in Allegheny Township while trying to save his cousin.
August 2001: A Kittanning Township woman, 30, drowned in Bethel. Authorities said she had been drinking.
August 2000: A Lower Burrell boy, 16, slipped from a boat in Allegheny Township a day before the start of school. Toxicology reports showed alcohol played a role.
January 2000: A professional diver from Trenton, N.J., 33, was inspecting the Piney hydroelectric plant at a dam in Washington Township, Armstrong County.
August 1999: A Penn Hills man, 50, jumped from a boat in the Allegheny near Lock 3 at Barking, Plum.
August 1999: A Harrison boy, 10, drowned near Allegheny Ludlum's Brackenridge Works in Harrison.
August 1997: A Tarentum man, 46, drowned in Tarentum.
August 1997: A homeless man, 54, drowned near the Springdale Marina.
June 1997: A Harrison boy, 14, drowned in the Natrona section of Harrison.
