It was a deadly weekend on the water.
Four people drowned in North Texas lakes between Friday and Sunday, and now officials are sending out this message: If you're going swimming in a lake, you need to wear a life vest.
Grand Prairie Assistant Fire Chief Bill Murphy says when incidents like these happen, it's usually quick and quiet.
"People think that you're going to sit there and flail in the water and somebody's going to come help you," Murphy says. "Most of the time you slip under and nobody even notices. Nobody knows you're gone."
On Friday, an 81-year-old woman drowned when she fell into Eagle Mountain Lake in Northwest Fort Worth. She was getting off a boat when she slipped and fell. On Sunday, two sisters drowned after getting caught in high waves and falling off a pontoon boat on Lake Lewisville. Also on Sunday, a 26-year-old man died when he tried to retrieve his shoe in Joe Pool Lake. He slipped under the water and never resurfaced.
Murphy says he believes all of these people would still be alive if they had been wearing life vests.
"I know it's cumbersome and they're hot and people don't want to wear them," Murphy says. "But if they saw the impact that it has on the family … it's devastating."
Murphy says everyone is at risk of drowning, even expert swimmers, and it’s it’s important to take precautions to avoid being in a situation where your life is at risk.
"None of these people went out there thinking they were going to drown," he says. "We think we're invincible, nothing's going to happen to us. Accidents happen. And they happen quickly."
Related
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow NewsRadio 1080 KRLD