‘Everyone Loved Her’: Baltimore Woman’s Body Is Found In Water After Disappearing While Celebrating Her Birthday
Tara Savannah Payne’s father—a retired Baltimore City firefighter and diver—had once rescued others from the same spot where he daughter’s remains were pulled from the water Thursday.
Jimmy Payne, a retired Baltimore City firefighter and diver, spent his career rescuing others from the Baltimore waters.
But on Thursday, the remains of his own 26-year-old daughter, Tara Savannah Payne, were pulled from the Canton shoreline after she disappeared early Tuesday morning while out celebrating her birthday with friends.
“For me, it’s surreal to be in the same spot where I have rescued people and helped bring them home,” Jimmy told local station WJZ of the heartbreaking loss.
Savannah disappeared early Tuesday morning after she had gone out the night before to celebrate her birthday with friends.
Baltimore Police said she was last seen around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday in the 2800 block of O’Donnell Street, according to a statement. Her remains were found in the water just off of the 1200 block of Dockside Circle, not far from where she disappeared, Thursday.
“Homicide detectives believe this incident was accidental and that foul play was not a factor,” Baltimore Police Det. Donny Moses told Oxygen.com. “At this time, we are still awaiting toxicology and autopsy results to determine Ms. Payne’s exact cause of death.”
Police have said she may have fallen into the water but have not drawn any final conclusions about the death, according to The Baltimore Sun.
Moses told Oxygen.com that police were able to locate and recover her belongings.
Jimmy described his 26-year-old daughter as a good person who had lots of friends.
“Everyone loved her and she loved everyone,” he said.
He described her as passionate about the beach, friends, family and her family’s dog, Taco.
Colin Koogle told WJZ he is still not sure how his long-time friend lost her life on what was supposed to be a happy occasion.
“She was going out for her birthday, and she was going out to have fun,” he said. “I don’t know what the hell happened and that right there is not where she should have been.”
Jimmy said he was glad his daughter was “brought home” to his family and thanked the community for their support, but said the family still needs answers about what happened in her final moments.
“As far as the investigation, I don’t feel it’s wrapped up,” he said.