Divers recover teen's body from pit

The Marion County Sheriff's Office has released the name of a Tampa teenager found dead in an old limerock quarry at Hardrock Cycle Park on Saturday morning.

The apparent drowning victim was Zachary Isaiah Newton, 18, of Tampa. The MCSO had been told on Saturday that he was 17. The latest information corrects his age.

The Medical Examiners Office off has not yet determined the cause of death.

Marion County Fire Rescue received the call at 11:05 a.m. and, at 11:11 a.m., reached the park at 6849 NW Gainesville Road, according to an MCFR division chief. Firefighters entered the water and searched, but it got too deep about 15 feet from the shore.

They backed out and notified their technical rescue team. Those firefighters, who use ropes and flotation devices, also searched but could not find the boy.

MCSO Underwater Recovery Team was notified. The dive team entered the water around 2 p.m. and recovered the body at 2:15 p.m. Assisting divers were the agency's Aviation Unit. A crisis intervention specialist from the department was on hand to comfort the families of the children who were notified about the tragedy.

The 10 remaining youths that were at the park, ages 16 and 17, told sheriff's deputies that the teen went underwater and did not surface.

Glenn Knox, owner of the Hardrock Cycle Park, called the death an unfortunate incident.

Knox said the young people parked their vehicles about a half a mile from the business and entered the property by climbing the fence in the back. He said they came from the Tampa area. It's not known when the teens entered the property.

"It's not safe to swim there," he said.

The owner said the water is approximately 30 feet deep and he doesn't allow swimming. Knox said it's dangerous because of its depth and because certain parts of the water have seaweeds and swimmers would probably struggle to get out.

Knox said everyone who uses the facility must sign in at the front. He said the reason is because motocross is a dangerous sport, and whether someone comes to ride or not, he wants them to sign in so he knows who is or isn't on the property. He said if anyone comes in and asks if they can swim, he will tell them no.

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118, austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb.