SAM RAYBURN, Texas — A man died this evening after an apparent drowning at Umphrey Pavilion on Lake Sam Rayburn, according to the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies were notified of a possible drowning around 5:11 p.m. Three deputies nearby arrived within eight minutes and joined a good Samaritan already performing CPR. Despite continued life-saving efforts by deputies and other first responders, the man could not be revived.

Preliminary information indicates the man had been fishing with his wife on the Umphrey Pavilion dock when he began coughing, lost consciousness, and fell into the water. His wife jumped in to try to hold him up, and a nearby boater helped bring him to shore and started CPR.

Justice of the Peace Brett Holloway pronounced the man dead at 6:13 p.m. His identity

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