Police searching Milford, Massachusetts quarry for missing swimmer

First responders were searching a Milford, Massachusetts quarry Saturday afternoon for a missing swimmer, less than one week after warning about the dangers of swimming there.

Milford Police Chief Robert Tusino said they were looking for a missing swimmer but did not provide any other information. The Douglas Fire Department, which was one of several towns assisting in the search and rescue operation, said it was in Milford "for a potential drowning."

There were dozens of first responders at the scene including police officers, fire personnel and emergency dive teams. 

Milford quarry warning

Last Sunday, Milford police urged people to avoid the area after an 18-year-old woman fell from a rock ledge in the Shaddowbrook Quarries. She survived, but was found bleeding with no memory of the fall and required a medflight to the hospital.

Tusino said the quarries "are not a safe place for recreation."

"We continue to strongly discourage anyone from entering the property or swimming in the quarries," he said. "The steep rock faces, unstable terrain, and limited access for emergency responders create an extremely dangerous environment where a single misstep can have life-altering consequences for civilians and responders."

Illegal swimming spot

The area has been a popular but illegal spot for swimming for decades. Last summer, Milford police said they would be cracking down on trespassers by threatening thousands of dollars in fines. 

Milford police detective Kevin O'Loughlin explained to WBZ-TV last year how easy it is for swimmers to get in trouble at the quarry.

"There's cars in there, there's old rusty barrels people have thrown in there, scrap metal," he said. "There's high ledge points so if you drop off that and you're not a good swimmer, you're not realizing you're going 20-plus feet under the water."

An 18-year-old from Rhode Island died in the quarry in 2014 after jumping off a cliff into the water and never resurfacing. 

"It's very dangerous back there. There's falling rocks all the time," Milford resident Deborah Draycott said Saturday. "They think it's fun back there, it's really not. It's not a fun place to be."