Viva Las Espuelas
12-15-2008, 04:16 PM
Runner collapses, dies at Dallas White Rock Marathon
Erin Lahr was young, an experienced long-distance runner, a newlywed.
Late Sunday morning, three miles from the Dallas White Rock Marathon finish line, she collapsed. About 20 minutes later, she was pronounced dead at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, two blocks away.
The Austin woman's death is the first in the recent history of the 39-year-old marathon, said race director Marcus Grunewald. A 47-year-old Mesquite man collapsed and died in 1986 after suffering a heart attack.
An autopsy is pending for Ms. Lahr, who was 29.
"She was just a wonderful person," Ms. Lahr's mother said from her Lafayette, La., home. "She just loved running."
She had recently married Jeff Lahr, her family said. They declined to comment further.
Authorities said Ms. Lahr collapsed about 11:30 at Swiss Avenue and Washington Avenue in Old East Dallas, near the race's 23-mile marker. She was pronounced dead at 11:51 at Baylor, the county medical examiner's office said.
Witness Donald Triplett said Ms. Lahr showed no sign of distress as she approached the Washington-Swiss intersection. Then she began to stumble, he said, and someone caught her.
Other people carried her to the curb, where she initially responded to questions.
But she quickly lost consciousness and her pulse, said witness Erica Sethi.
"Her body was cold," Ms. Sethi said. "She was already gone."
Mr. Triplett said people asked police for a defibrillator, but officers did not have one. Onlookers tried to revive her with CPR.
"They just wouldn't stop," said Mr. Triplett. "Everyone kept asking where was the ambulance."
According to her Facebook page, Ms. Lahr grew up in Layafette before graduating from Louisiana State University in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in environmental engineering. She later received a master's degree there.
On Sunday, she joined more than 16,000 participants in 66-degree weather – 19 degrees warmer than last year. The higher temperatures prompted race organizers to add medical aid and water along the route, Mr. Grunewald said.
"This is one big family," he said. "This is very sad."
Erin Lahr was young, an experienced long-distance runner, a newlywed.
Late Sunday morning, three miles from the Dallas White Rock Marathon finish line, she collapsed. About 20 minutes later, she was pronounced dead at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, two blocks away.
The Austin woman's death is the first in the recent history of the 39-year-old marathon, said race director Marcus Grunewald. A 47-year-old Mesquite man collapsed and died in 1986 after suffering a heart attack.
An autopsy is pending for Ms. Lahr, who was 29.
"She was just a wonderful person," Ms. Lahr's mother said from her Lafayette, La., home. "She just loved running."
She had recently married Jeff Lahr, her family said. They declined to comment further.
Authorities said Ms. Lahr collapsed about 11:30 at Swiss Avenue and Washington Avenue in Old East Dallas, near the race's 23-mile marker. She was pronounced dead at 11:51 at Baylor, the county medical examiner's office said.
Witness Donald Triplett said Ms. Lahr showed no sign of distress as she approached the Washington-Swiss intersection. Then she began to stumble, he said, and someone caught her.
Other people carried her to the curb, where she initially responded to questions.
But she quickly lost consciousness and her pulse, said witness Erica Sethi.
"Her body was cold," Ms. Sethi said. "She was already gone."
Mr. Triplett said people asked police for a defibrillator, but officers did not have one. Onlookers tried to revive her with CPR.
"They just wouldn't stop," said Mr. Triplett. "Everyone kept asking where was the ambulance."
According to her Facebook page, Ms. Lahr grew up in Layafette before graduating from Louisiana State University in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in environmental engineering. She later received a master's degree there.
On Sunday, she joined more than 16,000 participants in 66-degree weather – 19 degrees warmer than last year. The higher temperatures prompted race organizers to add medical aid and water along the route, Mr. Grunewald said.
"This is one big family," he said. "This is very sad."