Missing Swimmer's Body Pulled From Lake Travis: Austin EMS [UPDATE]

AUSTIN, TX -- EMS officials confirmed a body was recovered from Lake Travis on Monday evening, likely the missing swimmer for whom a massive search was launched on Saturday.

Austin-Travis County EMS officials responded to reports of a body seen floating on the surface of the lake at about 8 p.m. On their Twitter account, EMS officials described the victim as a male in his 30s.

On Saturday afternoon, EMS and STAR Flight officials launched a search of the Little Devils Hollow portion of Lake Travis after reports of a swimmer there gone missing. By Monday, they found a body at the Emerald Point Marina part of the lake.

EMS officials referred further questions to the Travis County Sheriff's Office. The spokesman there, Roger Wade, told Patch via email that more details would be available on Tuesday.

Also on Monday, the teenager who drowned in Barton Creek over the weekend was idenfied by officials. The victim was Hansel Rene Hernandez-Garay, a 15-year-old male from Houston, the Travis County medical examiner’s office told the Austin American-Statesman.

The initial autopsy confirmed the boy accidentally drowned, the Statesman reported.

This is the fourth drowning to occur at area waterways in a two-week span. Two people have drowned at Barton Creek in recent days, another at Barton Springs Pool and the latest victim at Lake Travis.

All three bodies of water have become treacherous after recent heavy downpours. Excessive debris caused by flooding prompted officials to close both Barton Creek and Barton Springs Pool, and stewards of Lake Travis re-opened that site on Friday after deeming it relatively safe in which to swim.

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From June 11:

AUSTIN, TX -- EMS officials pulled the body of another drowning victim at Barton Creek and were attempting to recover another body from Lake Travis Saturday afternoon.

Shortly after 2 p.m., Austin-Travis County EMS officials said they were looking for a male teen who went underwater and failed to re-surface. About half an hour later, STAR Flight medics cancelled their search for undisclosed reasons.

"STAR Flight has been cancelled due to exhausting their abilities on search," EMS officials said via Twitter, adding in their abbreviation-laden nomenclature that rescue swimmers were continuing the search inside the water: "Search in H2O continues w/ResQ swimmers."

But 10 minutes before 3 p.m., the body of the young man was found. EMS officials said he had been submerged for more than 20 minutes by the time they found him, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Then, less than one hour later, EMS and STAR Flight medics descended on Lake Travis after a report of another missing swimmer. By 4:30 p.m., EMS officials changed the nature of their mission from one of search-and-rescue to recovery in the Little Devils Hollow portion of Lake Travis where the swimmer's body was presumably found.

Officials at the Lower Colorado River Authority, who have stewardship over Lake Travis, just re-opened the area to the public after deeming it relatively safe to access. After heavy downpours, the lake had been closed and boating bans were in effect given the treacherous, flood-created conditions.

No details are yet available on the Lake Travis second drowning. Patch will update as more information becomes available.

At Barton Creek, Saturday's drowning was the third to occur in the area in the past two weeks amid waterways with added debris as a result of recent downpours and stronger currents fed by the extra storm water.

On Memorial Day, a woman tubing with friends in the nearby, naturally fed Barton Springs Pool was sucked onto a culvert and drowned given stronger, post-flood currents. Then, last week, a 24-year-old man drowned at Barton Creek after a late-night swim with friends.

Despite the flood-fueled dangers, parks officials on June 8 re-opened the Barton Creek Greenbelt to the public after a post-storms assessment.

"Trail conditions have improved to the point that residents will be able to enjoy the greenbelt again," parks officials said in a statement at the time. "The Parks and Recreation Department does ask the public to stay 'trail aware' and avoid any areas that look hazardous."

However, Barton Creek itself has been closed to swimming since June 1, while Barton Springs Pool has been closed since May 27. After the last drowning at Barton Creek last week, officials heightened their pleas to the public to heed the warnings and avoid swimming in the waterway.

FINAL H2O ResQ: victim has been located by ResQ swimmers, medics have obtained DOS pronouncement on teen male submersion >20min
— ATCEMS (@ATCEMS) June 11, 2016

Recent heavy rains have wreaked havoc on area waterways, prompting their closure as a result of added debris and subsequently treacherous waters fed by flood waters. Parks, too, have been impacted by the recent downpours.

City park officials have deemed several parks and waterways too dangerous for the public to visit and have closed them as a result. Here's a tally of those closures, gleaned from the Austin Parks & Recreation Department:

Colorado River Wildlife Sanctuary

5827 Levander Loop, Austin, Texas 78702
Date of closure: June 8, 2016
Description: Colorado River Wildlife Sanctuary is currently underwater.

Onion Creek Metropolitan Park and Greenbelt
Park and Greenbelt are closed to the public due to debris from flooding.

Roy G. Guerrero Colorado River Metropolitan Park
Structure Closure: The pedestrian bridge is closed due to flood damage until further notice.

Barton Springs Pool

Date of closure: May 27, 2016 - TBD
"Description: Barton Springs Pool is closed due to flooding. We are monitoring conditions to determine when the pool can reopen."

Additionally, a handful of trails are closed to the public for a variety of reasons, including flooding at some sites:

Parts of Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail

Date of closure: June 2, 2016
The following locations on Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail have been closed, due to high water levels on trail:
• Canoe rental at A/H - closed due to high rising water levels that have flooded this section of trail.
• South side of Pfluger Bridge, directly under, waters have flooded the trail so it too has been closed.

Eastwoods Neighborhood Park Trail
Date of Closure: November 19, 2015 - June 2016
Closure Area: The trailhead entrance at Sparks Ave. and a short section of the westside trail.
Description: The trail will be used as construction access for the ongoing Creek restoration project.

Shoal Creek Trail

Date of Closure: October 2013 - Spring 2016
Description: Shoal Creek trail between Cesar Chavez and 3rd Street is currently closed due to the new Central Library and 2nd Street Bridge projects. Information on these projects can be found at: http://library.austintexas.gov/newcentral. Construction is projected to be complete spring 2016 and therefore a trail detour is required for the duration of the project. . For recreation trail.

Officials also have implemented bans on boating and other recreational activity at several area lakes as a result of flood-induced conditions. According to the Austin Police Department, Lake Austin and Lady Bird Lake will remain closed until Monday, June 13, along with the Colorado River downstream of Longhorn Dam.

Amid the mass closures, Lower Colorado River Authority officials recently re-opened several lakes under their stewardship after determining they were relatively safe now. Still, they urged visitors to be on the lookout for debris and stronger currents and remain on heightened alert to same.

LCRA officials on Friday said Friday that Lake Buchanan, Lake Inks, Marble Falls Lake and Lake Travis are all now open.

The flood-caused closures of city pools diminish the number of aquatics facilities available to the public as summer approaches. Other city pools closed due to non-flooding circumstances include:

Springwoods Pool
Date of closure: May 6, 2016 - TBD

Chestnut Splash Pad
Date of closure: June 8, 2016 - TBD
Description: Multi port valves that are broken.

Liz Carpenter Splash Pad

Date of closure: June 12, 2015 - TBD
Description: Closed due to leak in underground pumping system.