Texas dad drowns after leaping into creek to rescue his son, Arkansas officials say

A Texas man drowned trying to rescue his son from an Arkansas creek, officials told news outlets.

The father, 42-year-old Jose James Flores, was a resident of Tyler, Texas, outlets reported.

Flores’ son leaped off the top of the Flint Creek Dam, near Siloam Springs, and into the water below on Saturday, May 28, TV station KYTX reported. Moments later, Flores jumped in after him.

Police received a call that two individuals, a man and his juvenile son, had gone into the creek and needed rescue, the Grand River Dam Authority Police Department told KTUL.

Nearby witnesses were able to pull Flores and his son out of the water and perform CPR, police told KFSM. They had been underwater for at least five minutes, and while life-saving efforts worked on the son, his father could not be resuscitated.

Flores was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the outlet.

The Grand River Dam Authority is investigating the incident.

Siloam Springs is about 70 miles north of Fort Smith.

This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Texas dad drowns after leaping into creek to rescue his son, Arkansas officials say."