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Father dies after trying to rescue son from water at Santa Cruz beach, family says
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. - The family of a man who died after trying to save his son from strong currents at a Santa Cruz beach, is preparing to lay him to rest.Loved ones will honor the life of Srinivasa Murthy Jonnalagadda Wednesday at the Chapel of Angles funeral home in Fremont, according to a verified GoFundMe page.Tragedy struck on Memorial Day when Jonnalagadda took his family, including his 13-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter, to Panther Beach in Santa Cruz.Jonnalagadda's son was in the water, when a large tide knocked the boy over, followed by subsequent waves that pulled him further into the ocean, the family wrote on the GoFundMe."Srinivasa suddenly realized that his son was struggling to get out of the water," the family said. "Despite not knowing how to swim, he ran into the waters to help his son out to safety."Srinivasa Murthy Jonnalagadda died after he tried to rescue his son from the water at Santa Cruz's Panther Beach on Memorial Day.A good Samaritan also went into the water to help, and was able to rescue the boy."He (Jonnalagadda) however was unfortunately dragged by the riptide into deeper waters and horrifically drowned as his family helplessly bore witness," loved ones wrote.First responders were able to pull Jonnalagadda from the water and on to the shore.