24-Year-Old Who Drowned At Joe Pool Lake Was An Athlete, Former Lifeguard

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) — The Dallas man who drowned over the weekend at Joe Pool Lake was a standout athlete, even a former lifeguard.

Brandon Bor, 24, was swimming with family at the Grand Prairie lake when he drowned.

His family said he was a strong swimmer — a former lifeguard — which makes the accident that much harder to understand.

They said he had gone to swim after a float that the wind pushed out of the swimming area but he never caught up to it.

The fire department believe he started to swim back and then went under.

Originally from Dallas, Bor was a track and football athlete when he attended Lake Highlands High School.

Six years later, his coaches still remember him.

They said he always held a great demeanor, the kind of player other kids wanted to be around.

Former coach Judd Smith said even though Bor didn't play much on the football field, he drew in big cheers when he was out there.

"He came off the edge and made a couple of big plays and everyone was cheering and excited," Smith said. "[I] just had a real love for the kid and could see he really loved playing football."

Grand Prairie Fire Chief Bill Murphy said the department believe more people are using life jackets now, but they're still trying to get more people to put them on any time they plan to go in open water.

"We don't know when these people get in trouble, how they get in trouble... There's a lot of unknowns," Murphy said. "The common factor is they don't have life jackets on."

The fire department said the case illustrates how easily drowning can happen, even to people who are in good shape.

This is the first drowning death at Joe Pool Lake this year.

In:
• Grand Prairie