Man drowns in Tucker Lake near Benson

Johnston County sheriff’s deputies said the man was swimming with his fiancée in the lake off Allens Crossroads Road about 3:30 p.m. when they began having trouble. It appeared both were weak swimmers, deputies said.

The woman was able to get out of the water, but the man, whose name was not released pending notification of family, continued to struggle. A lifeguard and bystanders helped get him out of the water.

He was taken to Johnston Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The drowning is the sixth in the region this month:

July 7 – Cody Hugdins, 5, wandered away from a family cookout and drowned in Lake Hickory. His mother, Christie Johnson Hudgins, was charged with involuntary manslaughter in his death, according to the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office.

July 8 – 14-year-old Jaimel Cooper drowned at Busco Beach, a private recreational park near Goldsboro, after witnesses said he got stuck in the bottom. His death has prompted questions about the safety of the facility.

July 16 – Cousins H'Katherine R'Com, 10, and John R'Com Nay, 7, were fishing with family members on the Neuse River when Nay went out in the water, went under and never resurfaced. Police say R'Com tried to rescue the boy and got pulled under as well.

In an unrelated incident the same day, a 15-month-old girl drowned in a backyard swimming pool in Johnston County.