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3 bodies found in R.I. waters

01:00 AM EDT on Sunday, August 5, 2007

By Nicole Dungca and Lisa Sparks

Journal Staff Writers

Authorities pulled three bodies from popular swimming places in Rhode Island yesterday, the police said.

One body was discovered floating in the water early yesterday morning at Bristol Town Beach; another was found in the evening near Gaspee Point. Authorities in Charlestown found a third body at Burlingame State Park.

In Bristol, the body of a 58-year-old Warwick man was found floating at Bristol Town Beach, the police said.

At about 7:22 a.m., someone called the police to report seeing the body, according to Lt. Nick Guercia.

Bristol Police and Fire personnel were dispatched and found the body floating approximately 25 feet from the shore. Water conditions were calm at the time.

The man was clothed in a wetsuit, swimming cap and goggles. Guercia said the police were told that the man was a frequent morning swimmer at the town beach.

The body has been sent to the medical examiner, who will determine the cause of death. There was no sign of trauma to the body and the police do not suspect foul play, Guercia said.

The police had not disclosed the man’s identity last night.

In Warwick, the police found a 56-year-old Pawtucket woman some 900 yards off the shore at Gaspee Point shortly after 6 p.m., said Warwick police Lt. Christine Kelley.

The woman’s husband reported her missing at 5:36 p.m.

The husband and wife were swimming with their dog. The man got out of water to take something off the dog. He looked back toward the water a few minutes later and didn’t see his wife, Kelley said.

The woman was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

The police declined to identify the woman.

In Charlestown, a man believed to be about 50 years old was pulled from the waters in Burlingame State Park yesterday afternoon and taken to a Connecticut hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The state Department of Environmental Management police are investigating the incident, said Charlestown police Sgt. Patrick McMahon.

The police responded to a call from a cell phone about 2 p.m. yesterday from someone who was witnessing a rescue attempt by a kayaker on the lake, McMahon said. The police believe the man may have fallen from a boat. The kayaker pulled the man from the water and performed CPR. DEM lifeguards on the scene also performed CPR.

The man was airlifted by helicopter to the William W. Backus Hospital in Norwich, Conn., where he later died, McMahon said. The police did not release the man’s identity or where he resides.

lsparks@projo.com

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