Community IDS Afghan refugee who drowned in Boerne
An Afghan refugee who drowned while swimming at Boerne City Lake has been identified by the local refugee community.
Mohammad Saleem, 25, was wading in the water Sunday when he stepped and fell into deep water.
Boerne firefighters said the water was initially about 3 or 4 feet deep before he reached a 20foot drop.
Bystanders attempted to rescue him but could not save Saleem.
The Boerne Fire Department’s water rescue team and Texas game wardens recovered Saleem’s body Monday morning.
Lawang Mangal, a leader in the Afghan community, said Saleem had just moved to San Antonio from Houston and wanted to enjoy the lake.
Saleem was with his friends when he drowned.
“They just wanted to swim because the weather is hot,” Mangal said.
Because Saleem has no family in the United States, a fellow refugee from his village in Afghanistan was the one who helped identify him.
Saleem himself had fled to the United States during the regime change. He was a target of the new regime because he helped the U.S. military in a position Mangal described as a bodyguard.
His body will be sent back to Afghanistan by Friday, Mangal said. The Afghan community is raising money to cover the costs of sending the body home to his family.
Mangal said many in the refugee community do not have experience with large lakes, nor are they experienced swimmers.
“We don’t have big big (lakes) in Afghanistan, just small streams,” Mangal said. “They don’t know precautions to take when swimming, like wearing a swimming suit or safety jacket.”
He said the refugee community is taking it as a lesson to be cautious around lakes.