Dad jumps into lake to save struggling 14-year-old son and both drown, Oklahoma cops say
_fitted.png "Nathaniel and Jamarious Richardson died after drowning in an Oklahoma lake on July 4.")
An Oklahoma family is mourning after a father and son drowned in a lake.
“I would have never gone to that lake if I knew something like this was going to happen, never. I wish I would’ve just went to the lake that we knew,” Kenisha Richardson told KOTV.
Richardson was at Keystone Lake with her family July 4 when her 14-year-old son Jamarious began to struggle in the water, according to the news outlet.
“I didn’t see him no more, so I’m trying to stay above water or whatever to swim. And then I hear my son saying, ‘Help me, momma. Help me.’ And I couldn’t help him because I was drowning myself,” Richardson told KOTV.
The family had been on an inflatable raft when the teen fell off, according to KJRH.
Jamarious’ dad, Nathaniel Richardson jumped into the lake to try to help him, authorities told KOKI.
While trying to save his son, Nathaniel Richardson went underwater and neither resurfaced, according to the news outlet.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol’s dive team eventually found the two dead in 12 feet of water, KJRH reported.
“What a tragedy for the 4th of July 2024. I believe this is the first one that we’ve had this weekend. And it was a double,” OHP Trooper Ryan Griffith told the news outlet.
Jamarious Richardson was described as “bright and spirited” in a Facebook post by KIPP Tulsa, a public charter school.
“I would tell them I love them. I love them so much. I miss them. And I’m so sorry that this happened,” Kenisha Richardson told KOTV.
Keystone State Park is a 20-mile drive west from Tulsa.
This story was originally published July 8, 2024 at 11:41 AM with the headline "Dad jumps into lake to save struggling 14-year-old son and both drown, Oklahoma cops say."
