A quick dip in a farm pond to cool off on a warm autumn day turned into a tragedy for a Mason County teenager Wednesday.
According to Mason County Coroner David Lawrence, Brandon Tucker, 19, of May's Lick, was working on private property on Hopper Lane, off Kentucky 596, in Germantown, erecting a fence with a group of workers.
Late in the afternoon, he decided to swim across a large, deep pond on the property, Lawrence said. The teen made it about two-thirds of the way across when he began to yell for help, he said.
Lawrence said workers on shore saw Tucker bob out of the water several times before he went under and never resurfaced.
"He began yelling for help, went under and never came back up," Lawrence said.
Lawrence said emergency services were dispatched to the scene at about 4 p.m.
Responding to the call were members of the Fleming County Search and Rescue with divers, Buffalo Trace Search and Rescue, Maysville-Mason County EMS and Germantown Fire Department, Mason County Sheriff Patrick Boggs said.
Tucker's body was located in the pond at about 9 p.m., and he was pronounced dead at the scene by Lawrence.
The pond was estimated to be more than 40 feet deep at its center, Lawrence said.
Tucker was a 2015 graduate of Mason County High School where he was well-liked by his classmates and his teachers, Principal Chris O'Hearn said.
"He was a great kid," O'Hearn said Wednesday. "He was friends with everybody, all groups of kids. He had a big heart."
Tucker was known affectionately as "Mater," a salute to his red hair, O'Hearn said.
"He was a unique and entertaining individual, a kid that was easy to like by his peers and teachers," he said. "It's just a terrible tragedy."
The Mason County School District is currently on fall break but is ready to address any grief issues students may have when they return to classes Monday, O'Hearn said.
"We'll gauge it Monday and see," he said. The school has access to additional counselors, if needed, he said.
Tucker was the son of Pat and Tonya Hardin Tucker. Funeral arrangements have not been released.
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