Watch: Off-Duty CA FF Saves Son from Near Drowning
A firefighter jumped into action when his own son jumped into a pool, saving him from drowning, a California firefighter association said.
In a 40-second Ring video posted to Instagram by the Hemet Firefighters Association, the 1-year-old boy can be seen approaching the pool before sitting on the edge and hopping in on Tuesday, May 16.
Within seconds of the boy sinking in the water, a man can be seen coming into frame, jumping to his stomach and pulling the boy from the pool.
“I look over and I can’t find him and I ended (up) seeing him sinking to the bottom of the pool,” Zachary Petite, an engineer paramedic with the Hemet Fire Department, told ABC7 News. “So that’s when I went over there, scooped him out and got him out of the pool.”
Despite the proper safety precautions around the pool, including a gate, the boy found his way into the water when his father’s back was turned for a matter of seconds, according to the association.
“This video is a sobering reminder that a child drowning can happen to anyone at any time in a matter of seconds,” the association said.
Hemet is about 90 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
©2023 The Charlotte Observer. Visit charlotteobserver.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.