Dennis Khaperskov (left) and Joe Darcy (right), two 18-year-old friends from Battle Ground, saved a boy from drowning in the Lewis River Thursday afternoon at Daybreak Regional Park.
Joe Darcy and Dennis Khaperskov, two 18-year-old friends from Battle Ground, saved a boy from drowning in the Lewis River at Daybreak Regional Park Thursday afternoon.
“I dove down, grabbed the kid, me and Joe brought him over to the shore,” Khaperskov said. “Another man came over and gave him CPR. He was unresponsive for a little bit. Good thing he started breathing again.”
“We came back up, swam to the island and we were yelling for help,” Darcy recalled. “We were freaked out. We started crying. We almost lost him.”
Darcy and Khaperskov were sitting on some rocks when they noticed a boy playing alone in the water about 10 to 15 feet away from the shore. The boy’s father asked them if the water was shallow there, and they said “No, no really.”
Darcy and Khaperskov went out to direct the kid where the water was more shallow. When they saw the boy’s head dip below the surface of the water and not come back up, they started swimming faster.
Khaperskov said he had to dive down pretty deep before he pulled the boy up from the arm. He estimated the kid had been underwater for about 30 seconds before they got to him and he wasn’t conscious.
“I couldn’t even see anything. I was just reaching around,” Khaperskov said. “He wasn’t even moving or anything at that point. I just pulled him out of the water.”
Darcy and Khaperskov thanked Phillip Campagna and Alex Masey for helping them save the boy’s life. Campagna was the one who performed CPR on the victim.
Darcy encourages people to take precautions before playing in the water. Swim with a friend, parent or relative. Wear a lifejacket. Don’t wander too off the shore if you are by yourself.
“Just don’t underestimate the water,” Khaperskov said. “The current might get a little bit stronger. The water might get a little bit deeper. You never really know what’s out there.”
