Two die near Shepherd in canoeing accident

SHEPHERD – A boy who fell out of a canoe and a man who tried to save him both drowned during a religious retreat on a small three-acre lake near Shepherd. According to the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Department, the bodies were recovered Sunday afternoon by game wardens. Their bodies were transported to Beaumont Forensics for autopsies. San Jacinto County Chief Deputy Robert Long said that neither victim could swim and neither victim wore a life jacket. Witnesses on the scene reported that a canoe containing three males turned over and a 15-year-old Houston male was struggling in the water, when a 21-year-old male identified as Edward Moreno, of Houston, jumped into the water from his canoe to assist the 15-year old. Witnesses reported that both males went under the water and never came back up. About 70 people were attending a church camp at the Bethel Church, located at 300 Red Road, when the incident occurred Sunday, June 24, about 9:30 a.m. San Jacinto County deputies along with first responders and San Jacinto County Game Wardens assisted at the scene.