Officials identify Douglas drowning victim as Oxford High School senior

DOUGLAS, MA (WHDH) – An 18-year-old graduating senior from Oxford drowned in a swimming accident in Douglas on Saturday.

The family of Annie Krantz said she was expected to graduate from high school later in the week.

“They had been there swimming, then she went under water—her friends looked for her,” said Douglas Police Chief Patrick T. Foley.

Police say one of her friends called 911. When dive crews arrived, they say the teens were panicked.

“They were frantically trying to find her.  They were out of breath, a little bit hypothermic from the cold water,” said Chief Foley.

After 45 minutes of searching, dive crews found Krantz at the bottom of the Whitten Reservoir, in about six feet of water.

Her mother rushed to her side, and asked the next door neighbor to watch her siblings.

“Very frantic, very panicked; you could hear the sobs in her voice,” said Mike Covello, the neighbor.

The area is gated and clearly marked “no swimming,” but emergency crews say kids go in anyway, often swinging from a tree. Authorities cut the rope down in an attempt to keep kids out, but they say people still sneak in.

(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)