West Palm Beach Man Drowns in Canal

WEST PALM BEACH--A local family is without a father tonight. Juan Diego Garcia, 37, drowned in a canal just behind his home off Congress Avenue in West Palm Beach around 2:30pm. He had been fishing on a dock along the canal.

"All of a sudden we saw him go under the water and then saw a whole bunch a bubbles come up," said Lacy Circkenberger, who called 911 when she saw Garcia submerge beneath the water.

It's unclear weather his fishing lure got stuck on the bottom of the canal or if he had dropped something in the water that he was trying to retreive. Whatever the case, authorities say he took off his clothes and jumped in.

According to Garcia's friends, he was Guatemalan and worked in the area as a landscaper. He leaves behind a wife and two small children.

The call came into 9-1-1 around 2 o'clock. Divers pulled Garcia's body from the water where he was submerged for more than 20 minutes. He was given C.P.R. and taken to St. Mary's where he died.

"He was hard working and never missed a day of work. He took care of my kids--he was a real easy going guy. Around the neighborhood he was well liked by everybody," said one of Garcia's friends who wanted his identity to remain anonymous.

Word of his death has spread fast through his Congress Avenue neighborhood. Friends and family say they are deeply saddened.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Department is investigating.