A weekend outing turned tragic Saturday night when a 14-year-old boy drowned in a pond in Clay Township authorities said.

Destin Badeau, from Pittsburgh’s South Hills, was pronounced dead at Butler Memorial Hospital where he was taken after others at the gathering pulled him from a private pond along Shroyer Mill Road shortly after 9 p.m.

An autopsy Sunday listed the cause of death as accidental drowning, said Butler County Deputy Coroner Larry Barr.

State police are investigating but a report was not available. Telephone calls to the investigating trooper were not returned.

Destin was reportedly attending a picnic with his mother along with her friends and co-workers. The name of the property owner hosting the get-together was not available.

The expansive property includes a man-made pond that encompasses about three acres, authorities said. A dock extends into the pond, which is 15 feet at its deepest point.

“The boy jumped into the water off the dock and after a period of time went missing,” said Chief Reid Campbell of the West Sunbury Volunteer Fire Department. “The other kids that were with him brought it to the attention of the adults on the dock.”

The water is about 7 feet deep where Destin had jumped, authorities said.

The other youngsters told authorities that while swimming earlier during the day the boy had been hiding as a joke and they thought he was just playing around when he initially couldn’t be found.

“He had been wearing a life jacket but for some reason he removed it when he jumped,” Campbell said.

Authorities said Destin told the other children that he knew how to swim.

The adults at the gathering immediately began looking for the boy, employing a rope line as they walked around the pond.

The county’s 911 center got a call reporting a possible drowning at 9:07 p.m. and West Sunbury and Unionville firefighters were dispatched as was the county-wide dive team.

But by the time rescue crews got there, the others at the outing had found Destin and gotten him out of the water.

“There were two or three there that had training (in CPR)," Campbell said.

A Butler Ambulance Service crew arrived quickly and a team of medics took over life-saving efforts.

“It was quite a hectic scenario,” Campbell said.

Destin was rushed to the hospital, authorities said, but he died in the emergency room. He was pronounced dead at 10:30 p.m.

Campbell called the death a tragic accident.

“It’s just one of the things that happens, unfortunately,” he said. “It’s not like there weren’t adults there or there weren’t life jackets around. He elected to take his off.”