BIG SUR, Calif. — The father who died after attempting to save his 5-year-old daughter who was pulled into the ocean by a large wave in Big Sur has been identified as a 39-year-old Canadian.
Yuji Hu of Calgary, Alberta, entered the water Friday afternoon after his child was swept off Garrapata State Beach by waves estimated at 15 to 20 feet high, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office said Saturday.
“As Hu reached for his daughter, both were pulled farther into the ocean,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a press release. “The child’s mother attempted to assist but was also swept into the water. She was ultimately able to make it back to shore.”
The body of the child, last seen wearing a white shirt, rather than a red shirt as previously reported, was still being sought late Saturday. A 2-year-old child who was present was unharmed, the Sheriff’s Office said.
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A visitor to the beach, along state Highway 1 just north of the Rocky Point Restaurant, and an off-duty California State Parks officer were able to pull Hu from the water and began CPR.
The girl was at Garrapata State Beach with her family at about 1 p.m. when she was knocked into the water by a wave estimated to be 15-20 feet high, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.
The off-duty State Parks Peace Officer and lifeguard saw the family in distress after the girl’s mother and father had tried to save her, but the father was overcome by the surf and the mother was forced back to shore.
The mother and Hu were taken to a local hospital where the father was later pronounced dead. The mother was last listed in stable condition with mild hypothermia, the Sheriff’s Office said.
A LinkedIn profile for Yuji Hu of Calgary lists him as a software engineer for San Francisco-based Arista Networks. He previously was a software engineer for Meta and Amazon, according to the profile.
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Large-scale search efforts by California State Parks, Cal Fire, the U.S. Coast Guard and Monterey County Search and Rescue were suspended at sunset Saturday, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Parks personnel remained at the beach to conduct shoreline and accessible-area searches on foot.
Rescue divers from California State Parks and a Coast Guard helicopter also supported the operation, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The National Weather Service had issued a beach hazards warning through Friday evening warning of sneaker waves that can strike higher on beaches, rocks and jetties than many beachgoers expect.
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