A father has drowned after successfully saving his three children who were struggling in a river on Wednesday afternoon, August 2.
The 42-year-old resident of South River, New Jersey, United States saved the lives of his kids aged 8, 11 and 13 after they went into the Millstone River and “became distressed.”
The father but tragically never made it out of the water himself, Franklin Township police said.
A bystander called police shortly before 2:15 p.m. and emergency responders rushed into the water but they could not find the children’s father.
Medics treated the kids at the scene and they were released without further medical attention, police said.
A dive team from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office pulled the dad’s body from the river more than three hours later, at about 5:30 p.m.
The father’s identity was not immediately released as authorities work to let family members know of his death.
Franklin police are investigating the drowning.
Just last month, two other fathers drowned saving children from different bodies of water in separate incidents on Lake Michigan and Lake Nockamixon, both in the USA.