photo by: Jackson Barton

Douglas County first responders stage at the Clinton Lake outlet during a water rescue on July 18, 2019.

Story updated at 10:30 p.m. Thursday, July 18:

Area first responders believe that a boy lost in Clinton Lake Thursday evening has drowned.

A 13-year-old Lawrence boy was swimming near the outlet at the lake, and when he went underwater, the people he was with lost track of him, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Kristen Channel said Thursday evening.

As of 9:25 p.m., the boy had not been found and the search had to be suspended for the night. Reached by phone, Channel said the morning’s search would be a recovery effort rather than a rescue. She said the department had no reason to believe the boy was not still in the water.

First responders from area agencies including the sheriff’s office, Lawrence Police Department, Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical, the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism and more were called to the lake for the search at about 5:50 p.m. Thursday.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers turned off the water at the outlet, which would cause water levels to lower, shortly after the call came in.

First responders had closed off the parking lot near the lake’s spillway and some areas of Mutt Run Dog Park Thursday evening, Channel said.

A LifeStar helicopter had been flying over the scene to assist in the search before sundown, a Journal-World reporter at the scene observed.