Man saves girl from drowning at East Dallas pool

A man pulled a girl from the bottom of a pool at a 4th of July party in East Dallas.

Steven Hall was standing near the pool at Samuell Grand Park in Old East Dallas when he noticed a girl at the bottom of the pool.

"Someone was like, ‘look.’ And I looked again,” Hall said. “She was just lying there."

He immediately jumped in the pool to rescue the girl, 13-year-old Shaneria Arnold, who was at the bottom of the 9-foot deep end. After a struggle, Hall pulled Arnold to the surface, where she was given CPR.

"In my mind I was just praying, hoping that she made it,” Hall said.

The on-duty life guards did not see her disappear in the crowded pool.

Paramedics arrived after Hall rescued Arnold. She regained consciousness and is expected to fully recover.

Dallas Police officer Larry Bankston was one of the first to respond. Hall’s actions impressed him and he posted a message on his Facebook page, declaring Hall was “a hero, and the world needs to know.” Bankston posted that he would recommend Hall for a civilian accommodation.

Bankston’s post has been shared more than 4,300 times in the first 24 hours.

"She's alive today because of him,” Bankston said. “She would've died if he didn't jump in that water. No one noticed. I believe she would've died."

Hall doesn't consider himself a hero. He said he is just a guy who followed his instincts.

"He told us don't look at him as no hero, but he's a hero,” said Anita Arnold, Shaneria’s aunt.