Hero who jumped in water to help rescue 7-year-old girl honored in celebration of life

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- On April 29th it volition beryllium a twelvemonth since Jaime Espinoza jumped into the Kaweah River to prevention a stranger's life.

The 7-year-old miss survived but Jaime didn't.

Alexandra Romero remembers her younger brother, Jaime, arsenic a hero.

"He's perfectly my hero, there's nary uncertainty astir that helium volition ever beryllium my leader and I cognize if helium had to bash it again. He would've, without a doubt," she expressed.

On April 29th of past year, Jaime, was visiting Slick Rock successful Three Rivers and barbecuing with his friends.

The Kaweah River was rushing hard and accelerated from caller rainfall and snowfall runoff. When Jaime and his friends heard a parent crying for help, helium didn't deliberation twice.

Jaime jumped into the h2o to rescue a small girl.

"Honestly helium would've done it again. He'd bash it successful a heartbeat," said Alexandra.

First responders besides rushed to the country and managed to prevention the miss and a antheral who were stuck connected a ample stone successful the river.

However, Jaime had disappeared beneath the surface.

Alexandra and her household spent the adjacent 30 days camping out, waiting, and searching.

The weeks of agony from not knowing wherever Jaime was turned into months.

Then, successful October, his assemblage was recovered.

"It wounded similar the archetypal time it did," recalled Alexandra, "It was immoderate alleviation due to the fact that past we were capable to bring him home. The past happening helium wanted was for him to beryllium successful the h2o for that long."

Jaime's friends accidental immoderate of the past words they heard him accidental earlier jumping successful to assistance the small miss were, "What if that was my daughter?"

Alexandra says his girl Yazmin, who is present 2 years old, besides keeps her father's memories adjacent to her heart.

"We speech to her astir her dada and we punctual her each time however overmuch her daddy loved her," she explained.

Jaime was a pupil astatine College of the Sequoias and astatine the clip had precocious finished immoderate arborist courses.

Alexandra says the outpouring of support, her ain children and her niece assistance her and her household get done the symptom that remains.

Jaime Espinoza's parent has 1 request: to conscionable the household of the miss who her lad helped rescue from the water.

"My ma would similar for that household to travel forward. She feels similar that is the closure she needs, that last healing. She needs to spot whose beingness helium saved," mentioned Alexandra.

To retrieve Jaime, the household volition big a solemnisation of beingness lawsuit from connected April 29th astatine the Veterans Memorial Building successful Visalia.

The lawsuit volition tally from 3 p.m. to 8 pm.

Everyone who knew him, oregon anyone who'd similar to amusement enactment is invited.

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