Seattle man, 35, dies in Lake Sammamish drowning

A 35-year-old Seattle man died Tuesday after people at Lake Sammamish State Park in Issaquah noticed him floating facedown in the water and pulled him to shore.

Paul Bear Brantley was wearing a life preserver and floating near an inflatable chair when bystanders spotted him shortly before 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. First responders performed CPR on Brantley for more than 30 minutes before taking him to Seattle's Harborview Medical Center, Eastside Fire and Rescue spokesperson Catherine Imboden said Wednesday.

The King County medical examiner's office reported Brantley's death as an accidental drowning.

Brantley was one of two men rescued from cold water on Tuesday, when air temperatures approached 90 degrees.

Seattle Fire Department rescuers pulled a 19-year-old man out of Lake Washington about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, about 10 minutes after he was seen swimming near the Montlake Cut.

The teen, who was not wearing a life preserver when he was rescued, remained in critical condition Friday at Harborview Medical Center, said hospital spokesperson Susan Gregg.

Swimmers in Western Washington are at a higher risk of drowning this time of year, as the weather warms and people try cooling off in waters that are still dangerously cold, Imboden said.

Water temperatures recorded early this week at beaches near the two rescues were 67 degrees in Lake Washington and 71 degrees in Lake Sammamish, King County records show.

Plunging into frigid water can cause a person to gasp, along with dramatic changes to their breathing, blood pressure and heart rate. Those changes can all increase their risk of drowning, even for those wearing life jackets, according to federal safety guidelines.

We get people who want to cool off, especially on an 80 degree day, but our water is slow to warm up," Imboden said. "Even with a water preserver, the water can be deadly.

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