Coroner ID’s Springfield man recovered from Buck Creek Friday

SPRINGFIELD — A Springfield man has been identified as the person emergency crews recovered from Buck Creek Friday afternoon.

Jeremy Craycraft, 38, was identified by the Clark County Coroner’s Office. His cause of death has not been determined yet, according to the coroner’s office on Tuesday.

Several departments responded to Buck Creek in Springfield just before 3 p.m. Friday on reports of a 38-year-old man in the water who wasn’t coming up.

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“When we arrived on scene, his family members were on the bank telling us he was in the water,” Captain Matt Davis with Springfield Fire Department said.

Davis told News Center 7 Tuesday afternoon that Craycraft’s wife said he was in the water transferring their children on and off and inner tube. While that was happening, one of the children fell into the water. As he was getting that child back on land, Craycraft slipped and went under the water.

As crews went in the water to find him, friends and family anxiously waited.

“I don’t wish anybody would have to see that with their loved ones,” Davis said.

Craycraft was recovered from the water around 4:30 p.m. Friday.

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“There’s no words to explain that. It’s a fun, happy family day. Then all of a sudden just something like that happens it’s just out of this world. It’s definitely unbelievable,” Travis Roush, of Northridge, said on scene.

Davis said drownings don’t happen often in Buck Creek, but this proves the creek can be dangerous.

“It looks like you should be able to walk across that, but you cannot. The rocks are slippery, the current’s strong and I would just avoid it,” Davis cautioned.

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