Seattle family remembers Phoenix man who drowned on his birthday at Lake Pleasant

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) – A family from Seattle flew into Phoenix on Thursday to remember their loved one and bring him home for a proper burial after he drowned at Lake Pleasant on Monday. Authorities identified the victim as 32-year-old De’Andre Taylor. His Family said he drowned on his birthday. “It hurts my whole soul to know that my baby is not here with me right now,” said Carmen Walker-Benard, Taylor’s mother.

Walker-Benard said her son was a great swimmer and grew up around water. She said he was not wearing a life jacket at Lake Pleasant. Now, she’s warning families who are going to the lake for the holiday weekend. “Life jackets, be with your kids, don’t go far, be with them at all times — don’t go! don’t go,” said Walker-Benard. The Peoria Fire-Medical Department and Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office will have a bigger presence at the lake this weekend, urging people to wear life jackets and be safe in the water. Meanwhile, Walker-Benard is bringing Taylor back home for a funeral. “There is no negative with him. He had the best, biggest heart,” said Walker-Benard.

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