Teen brothers who died in apparent drowning at popular Springvale swimming area identified
The 17-year-old and 16-year-old brothers who were found dead in Maine's Mousam River have been identified by school officials.
In a letter to parents and guardians, Sanford Superintendent of Schools Matt Nelson expressed "profound sadness" about the apparent drownings of Tavayne Weir, a student at Sanford High School, and Weir's stepbrother, Diandre Graham.
"Our sincere condolences and thoughts go out to the student's family and friends," Nelson wrote. "We are saddened by the loss to our school community and will make every effort to help you and your child as you need."
The two brothers had told their parents they were going to the Springvale Recreation Area on Sunday, but Sanford police said they received a call from the boys' parents when they missed their 10 p.m. curfew.
When police arrived about 11 p.m., they found the boys' vehicle in the parking lot but no sign of them. It was dark, so police called the Sanford Fire Department to help with the search effort.
Police officers and firefighters searched the water for about an hour and a half before locating the boys' bodies.
"Using flashlights and high-intensity lights, they were able to locate them below the water," said Maj. Matthew Gagne of the Sanford Police Department.
The Springvale Recreation Area has a roped-off swimming area, which is monitored by lifeguards during daylight hours, and a trail system on both sides of the Mousam River.
About a quarter-mile upriver, there is a 30-foot cliff where people jump into a river pool. There are also some rocks across from the swimming area that people have been known to climb and jump into the water.
"We don't know if they were jumping or just swimming because we don't know exactly what time they went in. We assume they were probably by themselves as well because we had no calls from that area that anybody was in distress or actively drowning," Gagne said. "There was probably a one- or two-mile-an-hour current, too, so that can change where they were located."
