A California mother is grieving the loss of her husband, who drowned over the weekend while saving their 7-year-old son after their kayak overturned.
“He was a very loving person,” said Mojgan Manafi of her husband, 55-year-old Hadi Ahmadi, according to The Press Enterprise. “If he didn’t have anything, he was still willing to help people. He was such a great dad. He was such a great husband.”
According to a news release from California State Parks, the incident occurred on Saturday, Dec. 6, at Lake Perris State Recreation Area in Riverside County.
Authorities responded to reports of screaming and people in distress in the water near Moreno Beach. Officials said a father and son had been kayaking when their vessel capsized.
Neither was wearing a life jacket at the time, though there was a vest inside the kayak, according to the department.
“State Park peace officers quickly arrived on scene via patrol vessel and immediately recovered the man, who was unconscious and partially submerged,” officials said in the release. “The 7-year-old boy was in distress but conscious and holding his father.”
“Investigators noted that the father heroically kept his son afloat throughout the ordeal, supporting him until rescue personnel arrived,” they added.
First responders pulled both father and son from the water and performed CPR on Ahmadi, who was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Manafi, who lives in Corona, told NBC affiliate KNBC that Ahmadi had been excited to go kayaking with their son Arti that day.
“They loved it. They were laughing so loud,” she recalled. “Arti was waving and yelling, ‘Mommy we are having so much fun.’ ”
Cellphone video from earlier in the outing showed Ahmadi wearing a life jacket while kayaking, KNBC reported. However, when they later returned to the water, neither he nor his son had their life jackets on.
Ahmadi was born in Iran and had been married to Manafi for 10 years, according to The Press Enterprise.
Manafi said her husband was “a very good swimmer” who worked out regularly, and that doctors believe he suffered a heart attack and then drowned.
“He was always my hero, but now he showed more than being a hero because he saved my son,” she told KNBC, holding back tears.
In its press statement, California State Parks said the incident remains under investigation and urged visitors spending time on or near the water to wear a Coast Guard-approved life jacket at all times.
“California State Parks extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones affected by this tragedy,” the department said.
