A father and his 8-year-old son were swept away by a strong current while swimming in Arizona’s Salt River — and were saved thanks to quick-thinking paddleboarders and first responders.
On Thursday, Oct. 16, a woman called 911 after losing sight of her husband and their son, who has autism and is nonverbal, while the family was near Sheep’s Crossing, about 20 miles northeast of Mesa, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said in a video posted on social media.
The woman told dispatchers she could hear them screaming for help from the river reeds. Neither the man nor the boy was wearing a life jacket.
Within minutes, lake patrol deputies arrived and found the father and son “in distress,” according to authorities. The man was “clinging to reeds with one hand” while holding his “struggling son” with the other, growing more exhausted by the second.
Because of steep cliffs and thick vegetation surrounding the 200-mile river, it was “impossible” for a helicopter or airboat to reach them.
Fortunately, swiftwater deputies were able to get life jackets to the pair with the help of nearby paddleboarders. Working together, deputies anchored a line and pulled the two to the south shore, along with their rescuers — a dramatic moment captured on video.
The child and his father were evaluated by EMT deputies and found to be uninjured, officials said.
“The family was visiting from out of state and unaware of the river’s strong current,” the sheriff’s office noted.
The Salt River supplies much of the water for the Greater Phoenix area. The stretch near Mesa is popular for tubing and for spotting wild horses.
