SPRING LAKE—A 19-year-old Fairview man died while swimming in Spring Lake in Utah County on June 25 around 6:45 p.m.
Weston Lane Peterson was swimming in the lake with a friend when he began to struggle. A bystander on the shore noticed Peterson and the woman struggling and swam out to help them. The bystander attempted to swim back to shore with Peterson and his friend, but was unable to take them both. When the bystander took the woman to shore, Peterson slipped beneath the surface of the water and did not come back up.
According to a press release from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to Spring Lake with Payson Fire and Ambulance and Utah County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue. Spring Lake is an unincorporated community between Payson and Santaquin in Utah County. Team members immediately got in the water and began looking for Peterson.
The teams used probe poles to search the bottom of the lake, below the place where he was last seen. Search and rescue divers also entered the water and began searching below the surface. Visibility in the water was near zero, so the search by divers was largely by hand.
Search and Rescue officials contacted Ty Hunter, Boating Program Manager with the Utah Division of Parks and Recreation, and he responded with an underwater remotely operated vehicle. After searching with the ROV, Hunter identified something in the water that needed to be checked more closely.
At approximately 10:55 p.m. Search and Rescue divers located Peterson’s body in about 10 feet of water. His body was taken to the medical examiner’s office where they will conduct an examination.
Weston is the son of Erik (Jolynn) Peterson of Fairview and Rebecca (Tim) Johnston of Mt. Pleasant. He grew up in Indianola.
According to his obituary, he was known as a hard worker; he loved the outdoors and riding his horse, Nightmare, in the mountains. He preferred to spend his time camping and hunting. He was not afraid to wear his Wrangler Jeans and cowboy boots anywhere. He was a true cowboy.
He was employed by MKJ Construction pulling fiber and loved working outdoors and getting dirty.
On a Facebook post regarding the accident, Sue Hooley commented about how much she loved Weston. He was a student in her Star Reading Program at Fairview Elementary School and was such a sweet and kind student.
A graveside service will be held on July 2 at the Fairview City Cemetery at 11 a.m. Visitation will be held at Rasmussen Mortuary on Thursday July 1 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. for those who would like to pay their respects to the Peterson Family.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family with expenses: https://gofund.me/af044878
