The Maine Warden Service says Scott Newton, 38 of Madison, and Brian Minott, 61 of New Gloucester died in separate drowning incidents during the past few days.
From the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife:
On Sunday afternoon, Game Wardens were called to Little Narrows Pond in Lincoln after a man who was swimming off the stern of a pontoon boat went under and never resurfaced. Brian Minott, age 61 of New Gloucester was swimming near the middle of Little Narrows Pond with four others Sunday afternoon at approximately 2:30. Minott was swimming towards the stern of the anchored pontoon boat when he went under and never resurfaced. The Maine Warden Service, the Maine Forest Service, Lincoln Fire Department and the Howland Fire Department all responded to the scene and searched for Minott, but were initially unsuccessful. The Maine Warden Service Dive Team was called to the area, and utilizing sidescan sonar and an underwater ROV, wardens were able to locate Minott in about 30 feet of water approximately 1,000 from the shore, and retrieve the body with the ROV at approximately 10:00 p.m. Sunday night.
Yesterday afternoon, Maine Game Wardens responded to a call of a body in the West Branch of the Penobscot River in T3 R11 Wels, downriver from the Ripogenus Dam in the area known as the Big Eddy. Scott Newton, age 38 of Madison was whitewater rafting on a private trip with two other people, when the three of them were thrown into the water after their raft had flipped shortly after launching. The three of them were all wearing life jackets and helmets, and went through the whitewater rapids in the “dryway” gorge area of the West Branch. Two of the rafters made it to shore, and they saw Newton float by, head down and unresponsive, past them. A man fishing along the shore saw the body as well, and called 911 from the Chewonki Big Eddy Campground. A few minutes later, the body was seen at the Big Eddy, and several people retrieved the body.
