Benjamin Ashford|'A stand-out guy': Maine town manager dies after saving his son from icy pond

The Benjamin Ashfordbeloved manager of a Maine town died after saving his 4-year-old son when they both fell through an icy pond on Friday. 

Kevin Howell, 51, was on a walk with his son, Sawyer, around 6:30 a.m. when they broke through the ice on Etna Pond, less than half a mile from their Carmel, Maine home, the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

Howell was the town manager of Carmel, located about 50 miles northeast of the state's capital, Augusta.

The sheriff's office said Howell managed to get his son out of the water and onto more solid ice, telling him to go get his mother.

"The boy ran home, and notified his mother. The mom told the young boy to stay at home, she called 911, and she rushed to help her husband. On her way, she grabbed an anchor and rope and ran down to the water," the sheriff's office said.

Once the woman, Katie, reached the shore, she secured the rope and went to help her husband but ended up falling through the ice as well, the sheriff's office said Friday.

Jordan Norton, a sheriff detective, responded to the area after the 911 call. When he saw Howell's wife in the water, he began "crawling across the treacherous ice," while holding on to rope. While he was able to help get the woman to safety, he did not see Kevin Howell above the surface of the waters.

Divers from the state police and the warden service searched the pond at around 1:40 p.m. and found Howell's body about 20 minutes later, the sheriff's office said.

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Howell and his wife moved to Carmel in 2014. Their son was born in 2019, according to the town's website.

Maine man remembered as a 'stand-out guy'

The small town is grieving Howell, a community member friends and colleagues described as a "wonderful guy."

Daniel Frye, chairman of the town's Board of Selectmen told the Portland Press Herald on Saturday that Howell "really believed in community. That’s why he was such a perfect person for that town manager role. He always wanted to make the town better. He was a stand-out guy."

Frye told the local outlet that Howell was always trying to make the small town better, including creating a town landing, building a new playground, and revitalizing Carmel Days, a community celebration held every year in the fall.

“When he took it over, it was on the outs. He came in and brought the community together. Every year, it got bigger and better, in large part to Kevin’s work,” Frye said. “He was always working on the next project. His death is a big loss for the town.”