Derrick Otim, British-Ghanian footballer who graduated from Nottingham Forest football academy died in a deadly lake in the United States of America last weekend. The lake is identified as Lake Keowee and it is located in South Carolina.
Derrick was said to be travelling to the cliffs of the city to visit some friends when the boat he was on capsized and the Ghanaian-born British footballer who was 24-year-old at the time, drowned to death.
There are no reports about the person who was sailing the boat or whether the youngster was in the company of another person. However, Pickens County coroner, Kandy Kelley, confirmed that the accident that resulted in the death of the footballer happened just off the boat ramp.
Lake Keowee is said to be very notorious in terms of the number of people that have lost their lives travelling through it. The lake has reportedly killed 32 people between 1995 to 2020. Hence, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources doesn’t intend to treat the case as just an accident as the department has decided to investigate the course of the footballer‘s death.
Before Derrick Otim lost his life in the lake, the youngster left the United Kingdom where he was born and raised to the U. S. to get a University education. He studied a four-year course at Xavier University, a private university in Cincinnati and Norwood, Ohio.
While at the University, Derrick Otim was an active member of the Xavier student-athlete. He played for the University soccer team as a midfielder and was named All-Big East Third Team in 2019. In his four years with the soccer team, Derrick played 70 matches, scoring 7 goals and made 9 assists.
Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest took to their official Twitter handle to pay their tribute to Derrick. In their tweet, the club wrote: “#NFFC are saddened to learn of the passing of former academy player Derrick Otim. The thoughts of everyone at the club go out to his friends and family at this tragic time.”
Rest in peace, Derrick ❤️
— Nottingham Forest FC (@NFFC) July 5, 2020
#NFFC are saddened to learn of the passing of former academy player Derrick Otim.
The thoughts of everyone at the club go out to his friends and family at this tragic time. pic.twitter.com/zqR5thSHlm
In the same vein, Derrick’s best friend during his years with Nottingham Forest, Matthew Cash, took to Twitter to pay tribute to Derrick. The 22-year-old Englishman who plays for Nottingham Forest as a defender described Derrick as “a top lad who always brought a smile to everyone’s face when around him”.
RIP del , can’t believe I’m writing this , Such a top lad who always brought a smile to everyone’s face when around him , RIP 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/cGJzGdrlcE
— Matty Cash (@mattycash622) July 5, 2020
