Man ID’d after he drowned in Tettegouche State Park waterfall on Fourth of July

The 25-year-old Kansas man was with a group when he went under in deep water at Illgen Falls, Lake County authorities say.

The Minnesota Star Tribune
July 8, 2025 at 3:11PM
A 25-year-old man from Kansas drowned on the Fourth of July while swimming at Illgen Falls. (Aaron Lavinsky/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A man who drowned at Illgen Falls in Tettegouche State Park on the Fourth of July has been identified as a 25-year-old from Overland Park, Kan.

Hari Kiran Gowd Senagana was swimming with a group when he began to struggle, a witness told authorities. No one was able to help him because of the depth of the water, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities used the county’s ROV, a remotely operated vehicle for searching underwater, to locate and recover Senagana’s body 32 feet below the surface. The Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office has preliminarily ruled it an accidental drowning, according to a news release from the Sheriff’s Office.

Illgen Falls is a 40-foot waterfall on the Baptism River, more than an hour north of Duluth.

about the writer

about the writer

Christa Lawler

Duluth Reporter

Christa Lawler covers Duluth and surrounding areas for the Star Tribune. Sign up to receive the North Report newsletter at www.startribune.com/northreport.

See Moreicon