Man airlifted to hospital after water rescue at Millerton Lake

FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- A man was airlifted to the hospital after a water rescue at Millerton Lake Friday night.

Fresno County Sheriff's deputies were called to the lake at 6:10 p.m. Friday after a 21-year-old man jumped off the courtesy dock without a life vest.

California state park Sgt. Steve Barber says the 21-year-old does not know how to swim and knew that before going into the water.

"By the witness statements that we collected from the folks and the family that were in the area, the gentleman was not wearing a life jacket and didn't know how to swim," said Sgt. Barber.

Deputies were able to recover him and did CPR for 15 to 20 minutes.

He was later airlifted to Community Regional Medical Center where he is in critical condition.

"This is our second drowning in two weeks," said Sgt. Barber.

Earlier this month a man died at the hospital after being pulled from Millerton lake.

RELATED: 25-year-old man dies after being pulled unconscious from Millerton Lake

Paddleboarder Ryan Pratt says he's been coming to Millerton for 15 years now and has seen the outcome of what can happen if you are not safe in the water.

"I used to always laugh when I read these things about people drowning in the lake, but it can happen, it can happen to you as an adult and as a strong fit adult," said Pratt.

Pratt says he's had to take action to help people himself.

"I've pulled kids out of the water here before, many times, I can think of three right off hand here that I pulled out," said Pratt.

Something that Sgt. Barber says is happening way too often across Fresno County and the nation.

"The fact is the matter is there is 11 drownings per day in the United States, which means every 130 minutes a person in the United States dies of drowning, That is something that is on the rise right now in the United States," said Sgt. Barber.

With the hot temperatures this weekend and full lakes levels due to snowmelt, Barber says it's important to use the resources available like life vest and swimming where there are lifeguards.

"We have plenty of opportunity for people to get into some serious trouble, we're really depending upon the people that call this place home to make safe decisions for themselves because there's only so many rescuers out there that can watch out for you," says Sgt. Barber.

And adds the tenets of water safety at Millerton Lake are straightforward.

"Plain and simple, if you don't know how to swim, you shouldn't be in the water," said Sgt. Barber.

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