Editor’s Note: This article’s headline has been updated after a cause of death was ruled by the Erie County Coroner.

Erie, Pa (WJET/WFXP)– The bodies of an elderly couple were found Monday night, apart from each other, in the water at the Erie Yacht Club.

A tragic night at the Erie Yacht Club on Monday. Two bodies were discovered in the water, near the boat slips.


Bicyclist hospitalized after getting hit by car, partially stuck under tire

Calls went out around 4:15 p.m. on Monday for an apparent drowning victim at the Erie Yacht Club, with witnesses saying they saw the body floating in the marina before calling authorities.

“The Yacht Club feels for whoever this is. Whoever the family is we feel for them. Our condolences to them,” said Russ Thompson, the commodore of the Erie Yacht Club.

Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook said the victims are a couple in their 80s from Greenville, PA. The woman’s body was discovered first around 4:15 by an employee who was off duty.

Her body was recovered by the Erie Fire Department’s dive team.

“I was doing some work and I noticed through the windows that there were a lot of emergency vehicles there with lights blinking and so forth, so we went over and took a look and I talked to the man who discovered the body. It’s very sad when anything happens like that,” said Nick Scott Sr., a Yacht Club member.

A little more than two hours later, the husband’s body was found. Coroner Cook said the couple were members of the Erie Yacht Club and had their boat docked there.

“Because the yacht club is contained the way it is, it would be unlikely that anybody would come in from outside, so something must have happened here, maybe an elderly person had an attack or something and fell into the water, slipped and hit his head, who knows what,” Scott Sr. said.

While it’s still not clear how the victims fell in, Cook said there’s no sign of foul play.


PA man accused fleeing fatal DUI crash outside victim’s home

“It’s always a tragedy when it does happen. We have a safety committee here that works hard to make sure that the docks are safe and that the conditions are safe down here, including ladders to get out of the water, so we do our best to make sure that people are safe here at the yacht club,” Thompson went on to say.

The coroner has not released the names of the victims, pending family notification. The Erie Police Department investigation is ongoing.