EUSTIS — A Stratton village man went underwater in Flagstaff Lake on Wednesday to retrieve a piece of dog-training equipment and did not surface, said Doug Rafferty, a spokesman for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Leo Pepin, 81, was training hunting dogs on the shore of Flagstaff Lake when the incident occurred, Rafferty said Thursday.

Pepin’s wife, Lucille Pepin, was with him and saw him go under, Rafferty said. She called for help from a neighbor.

Eustis firefighters retrieved Leo Pepin’s body in about 10 to 15 feet of water, Rafferty said.

dperry@sunjournal.com

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