CAMDEN — On July 28 at 3:15 p.m., Camden Police received a search and rescue call for an elderly male that had gone swimming and had not surfaced. Police, fire and EMS responded to  161 Beaucaire Ave.

Rescue personnel used kayaks to search the area and located John N. Gardner 88, of Charlottesville, Virginia, approximately 50 yards from shore in about 10 feet of water. A state Police diver responded and recovered the body. Initial statements and reporting appears that Gardner suffered a possible medical incident while swimming. Gardner was taken into the care of Long Funeral Home.

A man, 88, drowned today, July 28, while going for a swim in Megunticook Lake.

Camden Fire and EMS, North East Mobile Health Services and Camden police responded to the lake on Beaucaire Ave., in Camden, at 3:19 p.m.

“The gentleman was swimming with his wife in front of their camp,” said Camden Fire Chief Chris Farley. “Then he went down in 10 to 15 feet of water and did not resurface.”

Neighbors, hearing the wife calling for help, arrived, and one went out on a floating tube and identified the location. The water depth, however, was too deep for him to dive and bring him to the surface.

A diver with the Maine State Police, Jeremiah Westbrock, arrived with his dive gear, recovered the body, and took him to the shore.

The police are working with the medical examiner’s office to determine official cause of death.

This story will be updated when more details become available.