Man who drowned near Red Bud Trail on Lady Bird Lake identified

Posted: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 12:52 PM - 16,459 Readers

The man who died in Lady Bird Lake on Thursday night has been identified, Austin police said.

Austin Police and Westlake Firefighters got a call around 7:45 p.m. Thursday evening when 31-year-old Panya Vongsaya drown in the lake. When they arrived they found someone giving CPR to Vongsaya.

The drowning happened in the 3300 block of Red Bud Trail near the dog park on the shores of the lake.

Felix Ramos, who was fishing with his son, Jorge, said he saw Vongsaya and three others walking on the Tom Miller Dam. Ramos said Vongsaya either fell or jumped in. Then he heard screams for help.

Felix jumped into the water to rescue the man while his son called 911.

"When they got him out of the water, him and that guy over there they were helping him to breathe again from mouth, to get him to breathe again but they couldn't do nothing," said witness Jorge Ramos.

Felix scraped his arm trying to pull Vongsaya to the shore. He and his son were both upset to hear the man they tried to save died from an apparent accidental drowning.

Family or friends were on the scene shortly after the man was pulled from the water. They were too distraught to speak about what happened.

Police remind people that it is illegal to swim in Lady Bird Lake and they hope people will obey the ordinance that prohibits swimming during the hot, summer months ahead.

* Story Contributed by: Jessica Brorman & Calily Bien

[edit]

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