By A Britton area woman has been identified as the victim in last week’s accidental drowning at Wylie Lake.
Lorie Wurtz, 20, died after accidentally drowning in the lake on Aug. 1, according to Capt. Tony Bisbee with the Aberdeen Police Department. The drowning was reported at 5:38 p.m.
Bisbee said Wurtz was swimming with a group of others from a Hutterite colony in Marshall County.
“They knew right away (that she was drowning), but it took about 13 minutes for her to be found and pulled out,” Bisbee said.
MORE: 20-year-old woman dies after drowning in Wylie Lake
An off-duty police officer was at the park with his family and immediately started searching for the woman, according to an Aug. 1 news release from police. Other emergency responders soon arrived to assist.
“It looks to be an accidental drowning. There were witnesses when it occurred. There is no further investigation,” Bisbee said.
Wurtz was taken to Avera St. Luke’s Hospital in Aberdeen by ambulance where she later died, according to information police released on Friday, Aug. 2.
Wylie Lake is formally known as Lake Minne-Eho. While there is a beach with swimming access, there are no lifeguards on duty. Wylie is a city park.
The Brown County Sheriff’s Office, South Dakota Highway Patrol, Brown County Emergency Management, Aberdeen Fire & Rescue, and the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish & Parks also responded to Wylie.