Hero mechanic, 21, drowns 'searching lake for missing dog' in heatwave
Liam Parker
Updated on March 23, 2026
A HERO mechanic drowned in a lake while he was "looking for his missing dog" during the heatwave.
Cory Nicholson, 21, died on Tuesday at Cotswold Water Park near Cirencester, Gloucestershire.
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Eyewitnesses described seeing Cory "struggling in the water and shouting for help" at the water park.
Joanne Pendlebury, from Waterland Outdoor Pursuits which owns part of the lake, said the man was "looking for his missing dog".
Two men - one aged in his 50s and the other in his 20s - jumped into the water and swam to his location "around 50m from the bank", eyewitness Agnes Baron said.
But they could not find him after he disappeared under the water of Lake 32 at lunchtime on Tuesday.
He could not be found for seven hours.
Underwater search teams worked well into the evening and police confirmed the man's body had been found just before 9pm.
Loved ones have described him as a "huge family man", who enjoyed "big, wide adventures of many sorts".
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His body was pulled from the water by emergency services at about 8.50pm, seven hours after he went missing.
It is understood the park remained open and police asked people to move away from the lake while the incident was being attended to.
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