HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – It was supposed to be a fun Easter Sunday at the beach, but Jazmin Medina watched it turn tragic for one family.
Medina says just before noon people started gathering near the water at Banana Bend Beach in northeast Harris County. "The family members didn't know what to do," Medina said. "They were shocked and they were crying."
The accident happened at about 11:30 a.m. Investigators say two people were on a jet ski as they pulled two of their friends on a tube. The fifth friend was on another watercraft.
The fifth friend's jet ski stalled or was turned off. Investigators say he did not know how to operate it. He lost control of the steering and crashed into the two people on the tube.
"I'd say it was 45 maybe 50 miles per hour and it was an impact because it knocked the other kid out of the tube," said Thanh Ngyuen, who witnessed the crash.
One of the men on the tube was pulled to safety. Medina, a medical assistant, performed CPR on him.
"He was just saying 'I'm here, I'm OK, I can breathe' but then he would run out of air," Medina said.
The other person in the tube, a 21-year-old man, never surfaced. Dive team members searched for about an hour and a half to find his body. The victim lost his life vest and drowned, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
"When we first got here he was sitting at one of the tables that we were looking to rent and he looked so happy," Medina said. "They looked so happy together and it's really sad how everything had to end like that."
Investigators said they are working to determine if alcohol played a factor in the accident and if any charges will need to be filed.