Maine town grieves after official dies saving 4-year-old son from icy pond
Kevin Howell, the town manager of Carmel, Maine, which boasts a population of fewer than 3,000 people, died a hero last Friday after local police say he managed to save his 4-year-old son, Sawyer, after they both fell into an icy pond near their home. He was 51.
"He was so proud of Sawyer," Daniel Frye, chairman of the Board of Selectmen, told The Portland Press Herald on Saturday as the town grieved Howell's death. "Kevin was a wonderful, wonderful guy."
The Penobscot County Sheriff's Office said in a statement on Facebook that Howell was out walking with his Sawyer at about 6:30 a.m. last Friday when they broke through ice while crossing a portion of Etna Pond about a third of a mile from their home.
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"Howell was able to get his son out of the water and onto the ice and told him to get his mother. The boy ran home and notified his mother. The mom told the young boy to stay at home, she called 911, and she rushed to help her husband," the statement from the sheriff's office said.
Armed with an anchor and rope, police say Howell's wife, who is identified on the town's website as Katie, ran down to the pond to try to save her husband. Katie quickly got into trouble, and she soon needed saving.
"Upon reaching the shore, the mom secured the rope to the shore, then went to help her husband, but ended up breaking through the ice as well, and was unable to get out," the police explained.
Penobscot Sheriff Detective Jordan Norton, who was in the area when the 911 call was made, arrived on the scene just in time to prevent what could have been a double tragedy.
"Seeing the wife in the water, he began crawling across the treacherous ice, holding onto the rope, and was able to pull the mother out of ice and get her to shore. He looked for the husband but could not find any trace of him," the statement said.
Norton quickly reunited Katie and her son at their home while multiple divers began searching for her husband at 1:40 p.m. His body was recovered from the pond a little before 2 p.m.
Howell and his wife moved to Carmel in 2014, according to the town's website. Their son was born five years later in June 2019.
"In his spare time, he enjoys woodworking, building cedar log furniture, working on and expanding his family hobby farm, and enjoying the outdoors with his wife and son including skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, ATV trail riding, boating, fishing and hiking," the town's website notes. "He also is an avid cook and loves to whip up meals for family and friends."
Frye, who worked closely with Howell, said the late town manager "really believed in community."
"That's why he was such a perfect person for that town manager role. He always wanted to make the town better," he said. "He was a stand-out guy."
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