Santa Cruz, CA.: In a tragic incident at California’s Panther State Beach, an Indian-American man lost his life while attempting to save his 12-year-old son. Despite not knowing how to swim, Srinivasa Murthy Jonnalagadda entered the water when he noticed his son struggling to get out.
Srinivasa managed to rescue his son but was then dragged by the riptide into deeper waters and drowned as his family helplessly bore witness.
Multiple agencies were dispatched to Panther State Beach in Santa Cruz County Monday when Jonnalagadda entered the water to rescue his minor son, California Fire said on Twitter. He was then boarded onto a California Highway Patrol helicopter and taken to the Stanford Hospital where he died later.
“He had taken his family to a nearby beach on kids’ request on Monday evening with no intention of getting into water. While his family was enjoying the ambiance his son was exploring the shore and suddenly tragedy struck,” a GoFundMe page organized for his family described the incident.
