When I read about the drowning I was perplexed by the line in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram article that said, "Students told officials that they had been jumping off a dock into the water."
A "dock" in Gateway Park, from whence someone could jump into water 25 feet deep?
The only thing I could think of that someone might characterize as a "dock" is the remnants of the abandoned, boarded up, boardwalk eyesores that the City of Fort Worth has let fester for years.
When I came upon the memorial, you see above, it was clear to me that it was the boarded up boardwalk that was being referred to as a "dock".
In addition to flowers at its base, the memorial cross has the name of the drowning victim, Malik Cisse, 5-11-95, 4-13-13.
Below is another photo I took today. What I saw in this photo bothered me.
A plywood barrier to the "dock" access has now been installed. The other entries to this "dock" were blocked prior to the drowning. I have used the now blocked, previous to the drowning, un-blocked, access to access the "dock" a couple times for photo taking purposes.
I have opined several times, on this very blog, that I thought it was irresponsible of the City of Fort Worth to let this eyesore fester.
And now a teenage boy, attracted to this attractive nuisance, has drowned. What had been a picnic to celebrate the end of Carter-Riverside High School's soccer season took a preventable tragic turn.
Now, why did the Star-Telegram not describe the site of the drowning accurately I can not help but wonder?
Calling an abandoned, damaged, partially boarded up boardwalk eyesore a "dock" seems to me to be a bit of a misrepresentation.
