19-Year-Old Man Found Dead After Falling Off Kayak While Trying to Escape South Carolina Storm

"He impacted my life so much," said one of Joshua Scott Edwards' friends

The body of a 19-year-old kayaker has been recovered after he went missing while caught in a South Carolina storm, officials said.

The Anderson County Coroner's Office said in a news release that authorities responded to reports of a missing kayaker in the Singing Pines Recreation Park at around 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17.

Dive teams searched the area throughout the night and into the following day before they found the body of 19-year-old Joshua Scott Edwards at around 6 p.m. local time on Sunday, Aug. 18.

The coroner’s office said his body was located in approximately 11 feet of water and approximately 20 yards from the shoreline.

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Edwards died as a result of a “freshwater drowning,” and his death was ruled an “accident,” officials said.

He and a friend had been kayaking in the lake when they “were caught in a storm that developed in the area,” the coroner’s office said. The pair had attempted “to return to shore” when Edwards “apparently fell off his kayak and was not seen again.”

The coroner’s office noted that Edwards had not been wearing a “PFD” or personal flotation device at the time of his death and said that the investigation into the incident was ongoing.

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The 19-year-old lived in Anderson, which is located about 15 miles away from Singing Pines Recreation Park, officials told The State.

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Following the news, Edwards was remembered by a number of loved ones, including a friend who described him as “a brother” to “many” people.

“He impacted my life so much in growing as a person, learning to forgive, and really just being a big part of who I am today,” the friend wrote in the social media tribute. “There will NEVER be another person like Josh to walk this earth and make the impact he did.”

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Another friend added in a separate tribute that Edwards' parents “raised a very respectful, loving, peaceful, understanding, kindhearted, godly young man.”

A family friend began a GoFundMe fundraiser for the victim’s family to help with funeral costs and expenses.

"Joshua was more than just a friend; he was a light in this world, a young man full of kindness and generosity,” according to the GoFundMe post. “He had a heart that always sought to help others, even when he had little to give. The impact he made on the lives of those around him will never be forgotten, and it brings some comfort to know that his spirit will live on through the good he did for others.”

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