Swimmer drowns during half triathlon on Lake Livingston
ONALASKA, TX (KTRK) -- Game Warden dive team members recovered the body of a man who drowned on Lake Livingston during a half triathlon Sunday morning. Family and friends identified the man as 27-year-old Collin Campbell and said he had competed in triathlons before.
Campbell was competing on Sunday with three close friends and training partners. He was feeling confident and pumped ahead of the race, which was to be a gauge for the upcoming Ironman race they were training for in North Carolina.
He was swimming ahead of his friends and had made it 100 meters past the halfway turn to head back to shore when his friend lost sight of him. Crews from Onalaska helped Game Wardens search a half-mile area for several hours.
"We used side scan sonar and was able to get pretty good image of the victim and we called the dive team and they utilized their sonar as well," Game Warden Brandon Thacker explained.
The dive team recovered his body before 5pm, hours after he was last seen around 8:30am.
With no known medical problems, no one knows yet what happened to Campbell in the water and his death was too painful for his friends to talk about. However, the guy they called "Super C," a popular friend who radiated positivity, leaves a big hole in the hearts of so many who loved him.
Race organizer PR Endurance Sports posted the following statement on its Facebook page:
"It's with great sadness that we have to share this news. Today, we lost our teammate and brother Collin Cambell. Collin did not make it out of the swim at Onalaska 70.3. He was a strong swimmer so this news was shocking to us all. We are thankful to the Race Director, First Responders and the Texas Wildlife Dive Team for their relentless commitment to find our friend. A few minutes ago, authorities recovered Collin's body from Lake Livingston - he is home. Please keep his family and our Frat Boys in your prayers and please be respectful of their privacy. We will keep you all posted on funeral arrangements."
