LOGANSPORT, Ind. — A well-known swimming spot in Cass County has been closed until further notice after three people drowned there in just three months this summer, including two children.
France Park, a county-owned recreation and camping area near Logansport, sits around a former quarry that starts shallow before dropping off sharply into much deeper water. That sudden drop has been blamed for multiple tragedies this season — one death in June, another in July, and a third over the weekend. County officials also confirmed a fourth incident, a near-drowning, during the same stretch.
One witness, who lives nearby and happened to be at the park during two of the incidents, described jumping into the water after hearing screams for help during the most recent drowning. Along with another bystander, he managed to pull two young girls to safety before a search began for their brother, who had gone under. A diver later located the boy roughly ten feet away in about eleven feet of water. The same witness said his girlfriend, a nurse, had performed CPR on an earlier drowning victim in June, though the man could not be revived.
France Park has no lifeguards on duty, and signage at the site warns visitors they swim at their own risk. Several park-goers say that policy may need to change, calling for lifeguards to be stationed at the swimming area to prevent further deaths.
County commissioners shut down the beach this week and released a statement acknowledging the swimming lake had seen only one drowning in the previous seven years before this summer’s sudden spike. Officials said they are now reviewing safety practices and operations at the park while awaiting official findings from state natural resources investigators and the county coroner’s office. Until that review is complete, the swimming area will remain closed to the public.
