New York, Jun 5 (IANS): An Indian-American father of two, who had taken his family for an outing at a beach in California, died while rescuing his child from a riptide.

Srinivasa Murthy Jonnalagadda, who did not know how to swim, was enjoying with his family at Panther Beach in Santa Cruz last week when the tragedy struck, according to a fundraiser set up by family and friends seeking help.

"Unexpectedly a large wave came and knocked his son down and subsequent large waves began to drag him into the ocean," the GoFundMe page read.

He ran to save his son when he realised that the child was struggling to get out of the water.

While Srinivasa was able to rescue his son with help from a samaritan, he was unfortunately dragged into deeper waters by the riptide as his family screamed and helplessly watched him drown.

Emergency personnel who rushed to the site were able to retrieve Srinivasa and CPR was initiated on him, following which he was boarded onto a California Highway Patrol helicopter and taken to the hospital.

He succumbed to his injuries, and was pronounced dead at Stanford Hospital.

According to Kion 46 news channel, Srinivasa was rescued by members of multiple law enforcement agencies, including State parks, Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office and Santa Cruz Fire.

GoFundMe has called for donations to assist Srinivasa's family with immediate expenses such as funeral costs, medical bills, and other unforeseen financial obligations.