Four people drown over Fourth of July weekend at North Texas lakes, officials say

Kaley Johnson
·2 min read

Four people drowned between Friday and Sunday while boating or swimming at North Texas lakes, authorities said.

A man drowned at Joe Pool Lake on the Fourth of July, according to the Grand Prairie Fire Department.

The Grand Prairie Public Safety Dive Team searched the lake Sunday afternoon. The man was not wearing a life jacket when the dive team found him Sunday at about 4:20 p.m., according to WFAA-TV. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition and died there.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the man as Alejandro Rea, 26, of Dallas.

Two people drowned about 8 p.m. Sunday at Lake Lewisville, officials with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department told WFAA.

They were reportedly thrown from a boat near Pilot Knoll Park in Highland Village and never resurfaced. They also were not wearing life jackets, the Parks and Wildlife Department said.

Searchers found their bodies about 12:30 a.m. Monday. Their names and ages have not been released.

An 81-year-old Azle woman died after an accident at Eagle Mountain Lake on Friday night. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office identified her as Nellie Strickland.

She was pronounced dead at 5:30 a.m. Saturday at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth, and her cause of death was drowning, according to the medical examiner.

She fell into the lake as she was stepping off a pontoon boat that was docking at a boat ramp, according to the Tarrant Regional Water District Police Department.

The number of drownings in the Dallas-Fort Worth area so far this year has some experts concerned. Thirty-seven kids have drowned in Texas so far in 2021. Dr. Cesar Dias, an emergency physician at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital, said people who are swimming at lakes should stay hydrated, wear a life vest and never operate a boat while intoxicated.

Even people who are strong swimmers can find themselves in danger if they’re dehydrated and tired from being in the sun all day, Dias said.