Compton Man Dies Trying to Rescue Two Strangers at Cabrillo Beach

A 36-year-old who is being called a “hero,” drowned Saturday trying to rescue a man and a boy who had been swept off the Cabrillo Beach breakwater by a large wave.

The Los Angeles County Coroner identified the man as Francisco Camacho Melendez, a father of six from Compton.

His wife, said in a statement on ABC News that her husband “would have saved anyone’s life.”

Eyewitness reports indicate that Melendez immediately jumped in after, and several others rushed to help. The 14-year-old boy was pulled to safety by people on the jetty, while the 49-year-old man was able to pull himself out of the water.

“There was no hesitation,” one witness told the San Pedro Beacon on Sunday after throwing flowers into the water. “We saw the wave hit, and the boy and man were gone — then that man, he just dove right in the water to help. He is a hero.”

Melendez was one of several people at the jetty on Sunday, which separates the Port of Los Angeles from the Pacific, and sometimes can be washed over by wakes from large swells or passing ships.

Los Angeles Port police received the call at about 6:30 a.m., and were immediately dispatched to the area.

Los Angeles City fire spokesman Brian Humphrey said that Melendez was unconscious and not breathing when fire and paramedics reached up.

Humphrey said that the 14-year-old was conscious and breathing, and the 49-year-old was in fair condition when they arrived — both were treated and released from a local hospital.

Melendez was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Photo: Cabrillo Beach breakwater (photo credit: Megan Barnes)