Man dies in Lake Ontario

POINT PENINSULA, N.Y. (WWNY) - A 20 year old central New York man died Wednesday afternoon when he went for a swim in Lake Ontario off Point Peninsula in the Jefferson County Town of Lyme.

Jefferson County Sheriffs said late Wednesday night that Ryan David Orbaker from Lyons, New York “for unknown reasons...went under water and did not resurface.” Deputies said Orbaker was swimming just off shore.

Rescue crews converged on South Shore Road and a member of the STAR dive team was able to quickly locate Orbaker and bring him to shore, but efforts to revive him failed.

Around 5:30 p.m. authorities had closed off part of South Shore Road.

Nancy and Joe McDonald were sitting right across the street from where it happened.

Nancy and Joe McDonald "We saw emergency vehicles went by and I looked out the window and I said, 'they are stopping right over there,'" Nancy McDonald said, "so we came out to see what was going on."

Rescue crews were working to resuscitate Orbaker, who had gone under water during a swim but hadn't resurfaced.

“I would say it’s right through that bunch of trees right there,” Nancy McDonald said.

Authorities say attempts to rescue Orbaker were unsuccessful.

Nancy and Joe McDonald "As soon as we came out I heard someone yell 'this is where he went down,'" she said.

This is a remote area, an area that's only accessible by one road.

With this neighborhood being so quiet and so secluded, the McDonalds were very impressed with how fast the first responders got here and got to work.

“Despite the distances, they were here and everybody did the right thing,” Nancy McDonald said.

An autopsy is scheduled for Friday.

Sheriffs were assisted by state police, the Three Mile Bay fire department and ambulance, Chaumont’s fire department, Guilfoyle ambulance and the STAR team.

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