Maine Man Dies After Saving 4-Year-Old Son from Icy Pond

51-year-old Kevin Howell died on Friday after he and his son fell through the ice on a pond in Maine

A 51-year-old man has died after saving his son from drowning in Maine.

Kevin Howell and his 4-year-old son fell through the ice on Etna Pond in Carmel, Maine around 6:30 a.m. local time on Friday, according to a release from the Penobscot County Sheriff's Office. The pair were crossing the pond on their morning walk.

Howell managed to get his son out of the water and onto the ice before sending the boy home to notify his mother, who called 911 immediately and ran to save her husband. She instructed her son to stay home as she grabbed an “anchor and rope” to help her as she ran towards the icy pond, per police.

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The mother ended up falling through the ice while trying to save her husband, and she was unable to get out. Penobscot Sheriff Detective Jordan Norton was the first responder on the scene and he “began crawling across the treacherous ice, holding onto the rope, and was able to pull the mother out of ice and get her to shore.”

Norton looked for Howell in the water “but could not find any trace of him,” per the release.

The mother and son were reunited at their house as an hours-long search began for Howell’s body. The Carmel Fire Department and members of the Maine Warden Service responded to the scene, along with six Warden Service divers and one State Police diver, police said.

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Howell’s body was located by two Warden Service divers just before 2:00 p.m. local time, more than seven hours after he fell through the ice.

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The 51-year-old was the town manager of Carmel, according to the city’s website. He and his wife Katie had been living in the small Maine town since 2014, and welcomed their son, Sawyer, in 2019, per the website.

Howell enjoyed “woodworking, building cedar log furniture, working on and expanding his family hobby farm” and spending time with his wife and son outdoors. Among the family’s favorite activities included “skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, ATV trail riding, boating, fishing and hiking,” according to his bio page. Howell was also “an avid cook” who loved to “whip up meals for family and friends.” 

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