Two Vallejo Officers Dive In To Rescue Drowning Man At Community Pool

VALLEJO (KPIX 5) -- Two Vallejo police officers are credited with saving the life of a man who was drowning in a community pool Friday evening.

It happened just before 5:00 p.m. at the swimming pool inside the Vallejo Mobile Estates on Lincoln Road.

The man's family talked with KPIX 5 off camera and said the 55-year-old would often take his two autistic sons, ages six and eight years old, to the community pool. On Friday afternoon, they said he suffered some kind of medical emergency that left him unresponsive in the pool.

That's when someone at the park called 911 and two Vallejo police officers were the first to arrive.

"55 year old male subject in the pool. He's not breathing at this time. They're unable to get the subject out of the pool," dispatchers said over the radio to firefighters. It was a call Vallejo Police Corporal Travis Aspergen and Officer Jake Estrada heard as well.

"We decided to go because we were not very far away at all," said Officer Estrada.

When the two officers got there, they saw the man unresponsive in the pool.

"Floating with his face down and his legs underneath him," said Corporal Aspegren as he described what the officers saw when they got to the scene.

Without saying a word to each other, the officers, who have been partners for more than two years, jumped into action.

"My partner jumps in first as I'm taking off my gear. He's swimming towards him. I jump in. My partner grabs his upper body, I grab his legs. We go over to the side of the pool, we raise him up, lay him on his back," said Officer Estrada.

"Six Adam 4 got him out of the pool and CPR is in progress," the dispatchers voice crackled over the radio.

The two officers were able to keep the man alive until paramedics showed up and rushed him to the hospital.

"Any officer in these circumstances would do this," said Corporal Aspegren.

"We were just doing our jobs, but I'm just glad that he is hopefully able to see his kids again, and they're able to see their father," agreed Officer Estrada.

The man's family tells KPIX 5 they're thankful he's alive and said he is still in the ICU in critical condition.