911 call of tragic moment drowning reported at Barack Obama's $12m estate
Tragic messages between emergency service personnel responding to the drowning of Barack Obama's chef have been revealed.
Tafari Campbell - who was married with 19-year-old twins - was one of the top chefs in the White House kitchen. He drowned while paddleboarding near the Obama's $12m estate in Martha's Vinyard.
He was last seen falling off his board and struggling to stay above water. Dispatchers sent crews to the scene, relaying: "Edgartown Fire and Water rescue personnel... For a 40-year-old male, possible drowning."
The 43-year-old's body was recovered on Monday by divers after going missing in the pond that backs on to Barack Obama's sprawling $12million estate in Martha's Vineyard.
He vanished on Sunday evening while he was out with another paddleboarder on Edgartown Great Pond, Massachusetts, and emergency crews were dispatched to Obama's residence.
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Tafari Campbell, 43, (pictured with wife Sherise) was found dead on Monday by diversHis paddleboard and hat were recovered on Sunday - and his body was found in the 8ft-deep waters approximately 100 ft away from shore at 10am on Monday.
In a statement, Michelle and Barack Obama said: "Tafari was a beloved part of our family.
"When we first met him, he was a talented sous chef at the White House — creative and passionate about food, and its ability to bring people together. In the years that followed, we got to know him as a warm, fun, extraordinarily kind person who made all of our lives a little brighter.
"That’s why, when we were getting ready to leave the White House, we asked Tafari to stay with us, and he generously agreed. He’s been part of our lives ever since, and our hearts are broken that he’s gone."
The incident unfolded at approximately 7.45pm on Sunday in the area of Turkeyland Cove, in Edgartown, Massachusetts, when police and fire agencies received a distress call about a male paddleboarder in trouble.
Barack and Michelle Obama's sprawling estate in Martha's Vineyard (Realtor.com)The location is behind former US President Barack Obama and his family's waterfront house situated on nearly 30 acres on Martha's Vineyard - an affluent island located south of Cape Cod.
According to witnesses, the man appeared to struggle to remain on the surface of the water before disappearing beneath the surface, failing to resurface again.
During the incident, there was another paddleboarder present on the pond with the missing man, who witnessed the unsettling event unfold before their eyes.
Authorities immediately initiated a rescue operation in their efforts to locate the missing paddleboarder.
The missing paddleboarder is happening near Barack Obama's estate (Realtor.com)Edgartown Fire and all other island fire departments, in collaboration with local and state police, the Dukes County Sheriff's Department, and the US Coast Guard are working together to bring the man to safety.
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Edgartown Police said in a tweet: "EPD is assisting multiple agencies searching for a missing adult male paddle boarder in Edgartown Great Pond.
"Please remain away from this area and allow emergency responders to perform their search."
Authorities are treating it as a rescue operation in the hope of finding the missing man alive and well.
Massachusetts State Police said this morning: "After several hours of searching last night, efforts to locate the missing paddle boarder were unsuccessful and the operation was paused to allow dive teams, flight crews, and other responders to re-equip and assess next steps.
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