Body of swimmer recovered from Housatonic River

SALISBURY — The Connecticut State Police reported on Wednesday, July 31, that they have recovered the body of a 40-year-old Brooklyn man who had drowned in the Housatonic River near the Great Falls.

The police had been called to Housatonic River Road in the Amesville section of Salisbury at about 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 30. A swimmer had been reported lost in the river and it was suspected that he had drowned. Fire and EMS volunteers from area towns also came out to help in the search for the missing man, as did members of the Connecticut State Police dive team.

"The initial search of the area yielded negative results," the police said.

"Members of the State Police dive team returned to the scene Wednesday morning," according to the report released on July 31. "They were able to locate the body of Anderson Guante of Brooklyn, N.Y."

The Medical Examiner’s Office has been asked to conduct an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death.

Area residents and, especially, visitors to the Northwest Corner are reminded that the Great Falls in Falls Village/Salisbury and the falls in Kent are extremely powerful, even if they look benign from the shore. There have been several drowning deaths, mostly of out-of-town residents, in recent years. Swimmers and bathers should note that even water that seems placid often has a very strong undertow; the falls themselves have an extremely strong pull. The rocks are slippery and treacherous all around the area. And there are complicated eddies around the rocks and the underwater holes that surround them.

Anyone seeking relief from the heat should instead visit one of the area lakes; guest fees are charged at most of the public beaches but there are ways to access some of the lakes from different spots along their shores. It is always safest, however, to swim at public beaches with lifeguards on duty.

The Connecticut State Police sent out a corrected report late Wednesday. The body recovered was that of Anderson Guante, 40, and not Pablo Guante, 22, as in their original report.