Knoxville police lieutenant dies in drowning near Woodworth

WOODWORTH, N.D. — The 57-year-old man who drowned Sunday morning, Oct. 26, near Woodworth was a lieutenant with the Knoxville Police Department in Tennessee, according to the department’s Facebook post.

Gordon Gwathney, of Knoxville, died after the kayak he was in tipped over in a slough about 15 miles northwest of Woodworth, according to information provided by the Stutsman County Sheriff’s Office.

Gwathney was on a duck hunting trip with three friends.

“This is an incomprehensible loss for our agency and the entire Knoxville community,” Knoxville Police Chief Paul Noel said in the Facebook post on Sunday. “Gordon was beloved by our department and so many members of our community. He was a truly exceptional police officer who mentored generations of officers, dedicated his entire life to service and embodied the true spirit of community policing.”

The Stutsman County Sheriff’s Office said Gwathney was duck hunting with three friends in a slough. Gwathney was in a kayak and went to retrieve a duck that was shot in the slough. Winds were 30-40 mph at the time of the accident.

While out on the water, the kayak capsized and Gwathney fell into the water, the sheriff’s office said. The sheriff’s office said he was not wearing a life preserver but had waders on.

First responders located and removed Gwathney from the slough before he was transported by Carrington Ambulance to CHI St. Alexius Health Carrington, where he was pronounced dead.

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department is investigating the accident.

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