MUMBAI:A crew member named Mike Bridger working on the sets of Johnny Depp's forthcoming film The Lone Ranger died of apparent drowning last Friday.

The 48-year-old diver is thought to have suffered a heart attack while cleaning out a pool that was going to be used in the film, it is reported. He was pronounced dead on arrival according to the coroner's spokesman.

"Our hearts and thoughts are with his family, friends, and colleagues at this time," Walt Disney studios Spokesman Paul Roeder said in a statement. "Our full support is behind the investigation into the circumstances of this terrible event," he added.

Police revealed the man had been wearing scuba equipment to carry out maintenance on a deep pool on a ranch near Palmdale, in the desert north of Los Angeles, where the Western is being filmed. Close friends said the victim's name is Mike Bridger, a welder and water safety guy who had worked alongside mega producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Depp for years.