Man, 30, identified in drowning Friday night in Murray quarry
Photos by Tom Rivers: These Murray Joint Fire District firefighters row a boat from the Holley Emergency Squad to near where a Murray man was last seen yelling for help when he went into the chilly waters of a quarry off Canal Road next to the Erie Canal.
MURRAY – Orleans County Sheriff Chris Bourke has identified the man who drowned Friday night in quarry on Canal Road, near Fancher Road.
Ryan J. Perkins, 30, of Canal Road was in the water of a former sandstone quarry with a dog, yelling for help when a bystander called 911 at 8:44 p.m.
Multiple fire departments responded to the scene with small search-and-rescue boats, as well as lighting equipment to try to find Perkins. The Niagara County Sheriff’s Office Underwater Rescue Team, Sheriff’s deputies, State Police, Department of Environmental Conservation, Orleans County Emergency Management Office and the County Coroner’s Office also responded to the scene.
One of the fire department’s teams on a boat was able to locate Perkins and recover his body at 11:14 p.m., Bourke said.
The body was transported to the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office.
“The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office is continuing the investigation into the circumstances surrounding this tragic incident,” Bourke said.
The dog was found by firefighters and brought safely to shore.
Firefighters from Medina, left, and Albion search the south side of the quarry pond near Fancher Road.
There was a long line of law enforcement, firefighters and other first responders along Canal Road. Their lights are reflected in the water of the former quarry.
