Boy saves dad from drowning
Published: October 10, 2006
A 12-year-old Marana boy saved his father’s life by holding the man’s head above water after he fell into the family pool.
The boy, Viktor Chavira, found his dad floating in the pool and bleeding from his forehead on Sunday afternoon. He called 911 and tried to pull his father out of the water after the dispatcher gave him instructions.
When he couldn’t pull him out, he simply held his dad’s head above water.
“I wasn’t panicking,” Viktor said. “I was too worried about him to panic.”
Rescuers arrived four minutes later and completed the rescue. Victor Chavira, 33, was taken to Northwest Medical Center.
When he regained consciousness, Chavira said he was cleaning the pool and tripped over the family dog. He fell into the pool, hit his head on the side and lost consciousness.
Rescuers praised Viktor for saving his father.
“He was extremely calm and collected,” said Capt. Adam Goldberg, a Northwest Fire/Rescue District spokesman. “He did a phenomenal job.”
Viktor’s cousin, JoAnn Romero, said the boy is calm and isn’t overwhelmed by his emotions very often. She said Sunday is the third time Viktor has saved family members from death.
Two of his young cousins, in separate incidents this year, fell into a pool and Viktor jumped in after them, dragging them to safety.
“We are just very, very proud of him,” Romero said.
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