Death of 18-year-old SC student-athlete ruled accidental drowning, coroner’s office says

ORANGEBURG COUNTY, SC (WIS) - The Orangeburg County Coroner’s Office has released their finding of the death of an 18-year-old Lexington County student.

Chief Deputy Coroner Sean Fogle says Marcus Dwyer III, 18, of Pelion, died from drowning in an incident on May 5. The coroner’s office has ruled the manner of death as an accident. No additional information is available at this time.

The autopsy was completed on May 6.

According to an Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office incident report, one female witness said someone jumped from a bridge located on Hwy. 321 and into the water, encouraging a second person to do the same. The witness also said the two people pushed each other around in the water.

According to a female witness who spoke with responding law enforcement at the scene, the victim “ultimately jumped into the water and began swimming” toward a friend he was with. When the victim got toward others in the water, “he began to struggle,” but one of the others “pushed him away.”

This same witness also called 911 after the victim went under water and did not resurface.

The witness in the incident report says one person went underwater and didn’t come back up. His body was later discovered and he was pronounced dead at the scene by the Orangeburg County Coroner’s Office.

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