WORTH TWP — A 52-year-old Lawrence County man died Thursday at Moraine State Park after struggling in Lake Arthur.

Park manager Dustin Drew said the man, who he did not identify, was in water that was about 3 feet deep at Lakeview Beach on the park’s North Shore when bystanders noticed him struggling at about 1:30 p.m.

“(He was) face down, basically,” Drew said.

Bystanders pulled the man out of the water and began to administer CPR. Another bystander called 911. Park rangers and Portersville ambulance responded.

After emergency crews did as much as they could, the Butler County Coroner’s office was called. A cause of death was not determined as of Thursday afternoon.

The man was inside the beach’s designated swim area when he began to struggle. The swimming area at the beach is bordered by rope and buoys to keep swimmers out of deeper sections of the lake. Drew said the area is 5 feet deep at its deepest.

Drew said the man was a resident at a New Wilmington personal care home and was at the park with a small group from the facility. He said the care home will notify the man’s family.

Dennis Patton of Pittsburgh arrived at the beach at around 3 p.m. to sunbathe. He saw the man’s body on the beach covered with towels as he got there.

“It was eerie,” Patton said.

He said he would like to see lifeguards at the park’s beaches.

“It’s just sad,” Patton said.

Drew said that all state parks switched to an “open swim” system in 2008. Only Presque Isle and Pike Grove Furnace state parks, which have deeper bodies of water, and state parks with swimming pools have lifeguards. He noted that park rangers regularly patrol the park’s two swim areas.

He said that most water-related deaths at the park involve those who are fishing or boating, and the swimming related deaths are rare.