Prep Athlete Drowns During Swim in Lake Mission Viejo

An 18-year-old Harbor City track star drowned Saturday while trying to swim with a cousin to an anchored raft in the middle of Lake Mission Viejo, authorities said.

Lifeguards pulled Victor Brown from the water at 4:43 p.m., more than 15 minutes after his companion first realized that his cousin had slipped beneath the water, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Kirk Summers.

Paramedics and lifeguards tried to resuscitate Brown, but he showed no signs of a pulse or breathing, Summers said. He was rushed to Mission Viejo Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo, where he was pronounced dead at 5:15 p.m., Summers said.

Brown was a senior at Narbonne High School and had accepted a track-and-field scholarship to attend San Diego State University next year, said Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. John Brimmage.

Brown and his cousin decided earlier that they should try to swim to a raft anchored about 40 yards from the shore, Summers said. But the two struggled to make it.

“Hey, I’m tired,” Victor reportedly told his cousin as they swam. “I don’t know if I can make it or not.”

The cousin replied that he was exhausted too but that they should continue struggling toward the raft, Summers said. When the cousin reached the floating wooden raft, he looked back but could not see Victor, Summers said.

Summers urged that people remain cautious near water, particularly during the hot weather when most drownings occur.

“Parents and friends should keep an eye on each other when they’re playing near water” he said.