A teenager has tragically died on a July 4 trip in Virginia after he jumped into a lake that may have been electrified, according to police.
Jesse Hamric, an 18-year-old from Colorado, was at Smith Mountain Lake in Huddleston – around an hour from Roanoke – with friends on Thursday.
According to the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office, Hamric leaped into the lake and appeared to suffer an electrocution near a dock.
Two friends who were at the lake with him saw him in distress and jumped in to help him, but felt a shock the moment they hit the water.
They managed to drag Hamric out of the water and began administering CPR.
First responders arrived and rushed Hamric for treatment at a local hospital. He was pronounced dead at the medical facility.
The two friends were treated for non-life threatening injuries after being shocked in the water.
The teen’s official cause of death is yet to be confirmed, but investigators believe he was electrocuted.
An official with the Smith Mountain Lake Marine Volunteer Fire Rescue Dive Team confirmed that there was a current at the dock at the time of the incident, according to ABC13.
Hamric had graduated from Steamboat Springs High School in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, just over a month ago. He was the son of the school’s principal, Jay Hamric.
“We are deeply saddened by the passing of a recent Steamboat Springs High School graduate,” the school said in a statement. “Please take a moment to care for yourself, lean into those around you for support, and care for each other. Our thoughts are with all of you.”
Mental health counselors were on hand at the school on Friday to provide services to faculty and students.
Alex Schwab, a friend of Hamric’s who had known him for three years, told FOX31 that he was struggling to believe what had happened.
“Still can’t even like process it. I’m so upset by it,” he said.
Schwab described Hamric as an “amazing” snowboarder and a “one of a kind” person.
“Ever since I first met that kid, I mean, he’s like one of a kind,” Schwab said. “You see him and you just, like, he always has a smile on his face.”
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