Fort Worth officer’s drowning brings outpouring of grief

An outpouring of public sympathy hit social media Saturday as word spread about the death of a veteran Fort Worth police officer who drowned while scuba-diving in Ardmore, Okla.

Harlan Tray Whitworth, 49, of Springtown drowned Friday afternoon at Lake Murray State Park. CBS 11 in Fort Worth reported that Whitworth was training with firefighters when he went under.

“This is a terrible tragedy,” Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price said Saturday.

“As a veteran officer who faithfully served the community … since 1998, the loss of [officer] Whitworth will be felt by all within the police force. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family and all our officers as we mourn this loss,” Price said in a statement.

In a Facebook post, the Fort Worth Police Officers Association declared: “We are heartbroken and saddened from the loss of a fellow officer and dear friend to many.

“Officer … Whitworth … will forever be remembered in our heart as a great man and outstanding police officer. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family as they cope with a tremendous loss. We will miss you Tray!”

Whitworth and three others were scuba-diving when he tried to retrieve an anchor he had found on a previous dive, according to a report from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. It says that Whitworth became separated from his diving gear and that the gear surfaced but he did not.

Officials used sonar and a diver to find Whitworth at 3:25 p.m. The medical examiner pronounced him dead at a hospital.

Oklahoma officials said the diver who recovered Whitworth’s body would be taken to Fort Worth for continued evaluation after being treated for decompression sickness.

Whitworth had served the department since August 1998, according to his LinkedIn profile. Previously, he worked at the Irving Police Department, according to his profile, which also describes him as an Eagle Scout.

Whitworth was one of three officers praised in 2010 for stopping a suspected drunken driver before his truck ran into the crowd gathered for the Parade of Lights in downtown Fort Worth. Whitworth and officers Linda Hightower and Johnny Bell “placed themselves into harm’s way to save the lives of numerous parade spectators,” according to a police news release at the time.

Whitworth was commended for jumping into the driver’s window and grabbing the driver, yelling at him to stop. The truck came to a halt within 5 feet of the crowd.

Public outpouring

Hundreds of people viewed, shared and commented on the police association’s Facebook post.

“RIP officer. Thank you for your service. Prayers for your family and friends. You are gone much too soon,” wrote Rose Stone Moody of Lake Worth.

“Prayers sent to both families (his family & his officers family!),” said Thomas J. Sanchez of Fort Worth.

Nelda Macias, who identified herself as a corrections officer in Johnson County, wrote, “Rest easy, we’ll take watch from here.”

Others took to Twitter to express grief and share their condolences, including this post from the Police Department at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the Fort Worth Police Department, officer Harlan Tray Whitworth and his family.”

Rick Van Houten, president of the Fort Worth officers association, said: “This hits hard to the FWPD family and is a tragedy that we are working through. Tray was an excellent officer that all respected. We are focused on the family at this time.”

He said funeral arrangements are on hold pending a ruling on the cause of death.

Staff writers Sandra Baker and Patrick M. Walker contributed to this report, which includes material from the Star-Telegram archives.

This story was originally published August 21, 2015 at 10:31 PM with the headline "Fort Worth officer’s drowning brings outpouring of grief."