A 54-year-old man died while keeping his young son afloat after their kayak capsized in a state lake in Perris, the California Department of Parks and Recreation announced on Sunday.
The father, who was not identified by the state agency, died while keeping his 7-year-old son above water during the tragedy, which unfolded Saturday afternoon at Lake Perris State Recreation Area.
“The father heroically kept his son afloat throughout the ordeal, supporting him until rescue personnel arrived,” the department said in a statement.
After reports of screaming and panic near Moreno Beach, state parks officers were dispatched to the scene shortly after 4 p.m., according to the agency. They immediately recovered the father, who was unconscious, and the child, who was holding onto his father’s body. Neither had been wearing a life jacket when their kayak overturned.
Witness Michelle Juarez was boating on the lake and heading to the dock when she saw an emergency boat speed in and noticed officers performing CPR on a man with at least one child on board.
“I would say it was … at least 45 minutes that CPR was going on,” she told news-gathering outlet OnScene.TV. “We could hear from the boat [someone] saying, ‘Take the child to the ambulance.’ … Something tragic definitely happened.”
The 7-year-old was taken by ambulance to a hospital, where his condition was being evaluated and where his father was pronounced dead, according to the state agency.
Another witness told OnScene.TV that another family member was evacuated after she started hyperventilating and her blood pressure spiked.
The parks department urged boaters and others to wear life jackets at all times. State law requires those 12 and younger to wear a life jacket on a moving vessel.
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