A hero father kept his 7-year-old son above water at the cost of his own life after their kayak capsized in a lake east of Los Angeles over the weekend, authorities said. <\/p>\n
Rescuers found the boy clinging to his dad\u2019s unconscious body on Lake Perris Saturday afternoon after bystanders reported screaming and \u201cpersons in distress,\u201d according to the California Department of Parks and Recreation. <\/p>\n
Investigators believe the 54-year-old dad, who they have yet to identify, drowned while holding his son above the water.<\/p>\n
Rescuers pulled the pair from the lake and gave the father CPR before paramedics transported him to a hospital in the city of Riverside, where he was pronounced dead.<\/p>\n
Lake Perris Recreation Area, where a man drowned after saving his son on Dec. 6, 2025. David \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n
A kayak like the one that capsized in Lake Perris, killing the father of a 7-year-old boy. Ints \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n
\u201cThe 7-year-old was being treated at the hospital for evaluation,\u201d the Parks Department said.<\/p>\n
Neither the dad nor his son had on a life jacket when their kayak flipped, even though state law requires children 12 and under to wear them on any moving water vessel.<\/p>\n
Michelle Juarez was boating on the lake when she came upon the desperate struggle to save the father\u2019s life.<\/p>\n