Photo: GoFundMe
A California teenager died while trying to save his younger brother from a rushing river.
According to the Sacramento Fire Department, a teen and two other individuals went into the Sacramento River on Sunday (June 4) to retrieve a football, per People. 15-year-old Amari attempted to rescue his 13-year-old brother Elijah after noticing he was struggling in the water.
Yolanda Sashe, the boys' mother, said she got in the water to try to help both of her children, but she was unable to save Amari.
“I looked down at him and I looked up and I felt his hands drop,” Sashe said. “Something came and pulled him away from me and he was gone.”
A nearby boat helped two of the three individuals swim to safety, but the third individual, identified as Amari, was pulled under.
"My son died a hero," his father, James Sashe, wrote on a GoFundMe campaign.
According to the father, Amari was a "straight A student" at Natomas High School.
The Natomas Unified School District confirmed Amari's death in a tribute on Facebook.
“Sunday, NUSD lost one of our students,” the district wrote. “It is a horrible tragedy and the family could use your help.”
The teen's body was later found in the Sacramento River using sonar equipment technology. Rescue swimmers rotated "quite frequently" while trying to locate the teen in the water, which can be choppy at this time of year due to high water levels, cold water temperatures, and the current, SFD Captain Justin Sylvia said.
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