Florida college student Graham McGrath found dead day after falling off boat in lake near campus
The body of a 19-year-old college student was recovered from a Florida lake Thursday — the day after he fell overboard during a boating trip with friends.
Officials pulled Graham McGrath from the murky waters of Lake Como around 11:20 a.m., concluding a frantic 16-hour search for the missing teen.
“We were hoping and praying that we were going to find him in good health,” Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said at a press conference. “Unfortunately, that was not the case.”
Marceno said foul play was not suspected at this time but also hasn’t been ruled out.
McGrath toppled over the side of a wake boat just before 7 p.m. Wednesday while enjoying the lake with 13 friends.
Lake Como, located roughly 16 miles southeast of Fort Myers, butts up alongside Florida Gulf Coast University, where McGrath studied and served as a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.
He was the only FGCU student aboard the private boat, which had the capacity to carry 16 people.
How the 19-year-old “went over the boat” and “never returned” has yet to be determined.
“I can tell you that they were swimming, they were recreating — as we want Floridians to do,” Marceno said.
“It’s a very, very unfortunate situation and accident.”
Rescuers scoured the lake throughout the night, but struggled to discern objects in the muddy “zero-visibility” waters that have dramatic drops of up to 30 feet, according to the sheriff.
Officials used helicopters and dive teams, as well as sonar technology, to locate McGrath, who was ultimately found 300 yards from shore.
It is not yet clear what the teen’s cause of death is, but officials noted that there were no physical signs of trauma on his body.
Marceno quickly dispelled theories that McGrath was struck by a boat propeller, which recently led to the tragic death of New York publishing executive Adrienne Vaughan during a family vacation in Italy.
Whether alcohol or drugs played a factor in the tragic accident is also under investigation.
The county medical examiner will run toxicology reports as part of the autopsy, Marceno said.
The 13 friends who were aboard when McGrath slipped beneath the surface are also being interrogated, but are reportedly cooperating.
“I will tell you, everything that we do we are suspicious in nature and, until we prove otherwise factually, we treat everything as if it is,” Marceno told reporters.
According to his fraternity, McGrath was just one week away from celebrating his 20th birthday.
“Graham was loved by all of our Fraternity, along with his friends and family,” Pi Kappa Alpha wrote on Instagram.
“Graham had a kind soul as his smile was able to be seen by all. His ambitious character and his gravitating personality was able to show what it means to be a true PIKE … We Love you Graham.”
FGCU, which is in its second week of classes, is offering free counseling services in the wake of the tragedy.
