Teenager Missing After Being Swept Away in Riptide While Trying to Rescue Parents

(GoFundMe)

A Wisconsin teenager on vacation in Alabama went missing after being swept away in late March while trying to rescue his parents.

The parents of Jevon Lemke, 17, said that he was pulled under by riptide while swimming at Fort Morgan Beach, which does not have lifeguards.

Chris Lemke told People magazine that he and his wife Carrie were swimming in the ocean when the violent riptide became too much to handle and they struggled to fight against it.

Jevon was one of several people who rushed into the water to try to rescue them.

“Selfless… He was selfless. He didn’t think about himself first—it was others. Always,” mother Carrie told Fox 10.

“We went and got help, we waited for the ambulance. There wasn’t much we could do. We were kind of helpless waiting for everyone to get there to try to search for him and get him out of the water.”

Family members admitted the teenager is likely dead but desperately want to find his body so they can give him a proper funeral.

“Just keep watching for him… If you’re a fisherman or anything just keep watching for him. I know he’s probably not alive. But I want to take him back to Wisconsin. That’s all that I ask. If you have a plane—please if you’re going over just check for me. That’s all we ask,” said father Chris.

State officials said recovery efforts have been hindered by the weather but hope to deploy crews this week to try to find the body.

The superintendent of the Reedsville School District, where Jevon went to school, told the Post-Crescent that counselors were provided to the students to help with the loss of their peer.

A fundraiser on GoFundMe was launched by a family friend for the Lemke family, which has three other children.

From NTD.tv

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