Family member describes fishing trip gone wrong at Dallas lake
DALLAS — The search is over for a 6-year-old boy after he and his father were swept away in a current at a Dallas lake Saturday.
Jose Carlos told CBS News Texas his brother, 26-year-old Fernando Carlos, and his nephew, 6-year-old Noah, were at Mountain Creek Lake on a fishing trip Saturday afternoon.
"I didn't know it was going to turn into this," said Jose Carlos. "I wouldn't have gone fishing. I wouldn't have gone. I feel like it's my fault because I brought him here."
Jose Carlos said Noah fell into the lake and Fernando Carlos jumped in trying to save him when they were swept away in a current.
Then, Jose Carlos' oldest brother tried going after Fernando Carlos and Noah, but they had already been taken too far.
"We're looking for Noah and Fernando, and my son and my nephew are down the stream maybe 50 feet," said Jose Carlos. "'We're over here! We're over here!' We ran over there, and by the time we got over there, I couldn't see them anymore."
"Reports indicated a child was swept under while fishing in a creek in the area," said Jason Evans, a Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman. "The boy's father jumped in to rescue him and was also swept under, and neither of them resurfaced."
Searchers recovered Fernando Carlos' body around 5 p.m. on Saturday. They continued searching for the child until roughly 7 p.m. when the search had to be stopped due to the diminishing light conditions.
Dallas Fire-Rescue said that at approximately 8 a.m. on Sunday, the search resumed with Dallas PD's Dive Team and the Game Warden's Office.
"Around 2 p.m., the child's body was recovered after it washed up on shore near Mi Familia Park, located at 2402 Cardiff Street, in Grand Prairie," Evans said. "The Medical Examiner took custody of the body and will confirm identity."
The family says Fernando Carlos worked as a manager for a commercial roofing company and was saving money to buy a house.
"He'll be there for you," said Jose Carlos. "Fernando would give you the shirt off his back for you. There's no wrong in my brother at all. There's nothing in his life that would deserve some karma like this."
Fernando Carlos leaves behind two other children, daughters ages 9 and 5.
"My family is going through it now," said Jose Carlos. "Everybody is just very emotional. Some of us are still in denial. Some of us have accepted it. It's just something we didn't expect."
Dallas Fire-Rescue, Dallas police and the Game Warden's Office are investigating.
