Manchester Girl, 17, Drowns In Lake At Heritage Minerals Site

A 17-year-old girl from Manchester Township drowned Tuesday while swimming with friends in a lake at the Heritage Minerals site, township police said.

Police received a 9-1-1 call at 2:27 p.m. reporting a missing swimmer at the lake, Manchester Lieutenant Vincent Manco said. The site is located off Route 37 in Manchester.

Responding officers were told the girl had been last seen by her friends in an area not far from the shoreline, Manco said. Police and members of the Manchester Volunteer Fire Department and Ridgeway Volunteer Fire Department searched the water and surrounding area. The New Jersey State Police Aviation Unit also assisted in the search, he said.

The victim was subsequently located in the water by members of the Manchester Volunteer Fire Department Scuba Unit and SCUBA-trained Manchester Township Police Officers, Manco said.

The Manchester First Aid squad and MONOC Paramedics administered life saving measures and transported the victim to Community Medical Center where she was later pronounced dead, he said.