Cousins Alexis DuBay and Jessie Dorsey as well as their aunt Sabrina Taylor were awarded the Clark Cowlitz Fire and Rescue Letter of Commendation for saving a drowning father and his two daughters at Paradise Point on July 19.
Two of Chad Cowan’s daughters had gone off to play in what he thought was the shallows of Paradise Point in Ridgefield, but the situation took a turn when one of his other daughters shouted at him to go help the two in the water.
“I look over and my other two daughters are going underwater, and they’re panicking,” Cowan said. “When I went out to get there as quick as I could, it took all my energy.”
When Cowan reached the kids he was unable to get them out of danger because they were at a dropoff in the river, and the sandy bottom provided him with no traction to move.
For five to 10 minutes, Cowan bobbed up and down while doing his best to hold his daughters above the water.
Sabrina Taylor had taken notice of the scene unfolding and alerted her two nieces, who were paddleboarding nearby.
“I guess I yelled for help a couple of times, and that caught their attention,” Cowan said.
The two teenage girls responded immediately and made their way to the family, DuBay on her board and Dorsey in the water.
“I’ve never been in that situation, so I just hopped off the paddleboard and swam as quick as I could, because that’s the right thing to do if someone needs help,” Dorsey said.
Dorsey and DuBay were able to safely secure the daughters to the paddleboard before turning their attention to Cowan.
“As soon as I got the girls onto the paddleboard, I went down to relax a second and I passed out, and then I woke up with just my nose above the water, treading water,” Cowan said.
After making sure the girls were safe, the two cousins turned their attention to the father and checked on him and his troubled state.
Several minutes later, everybody was back at shore and the emergency services had been called to the scene.
“If those girls hadn’t been there, we wouldn’t be here right now, because I couldn’t get them to shallower water,” Cowan said.
According to District 10 Fire Chief John Nohr, while Paradise Point can be a fun place for families to enjoy the Lewis River, it can also be dangerous due to the underwater terrain changes.
“There is a dropoff, what we call a ledge,” Nohr said. “You don’t necessarily see it when you’re standing right there in the water. You take another step and it gets really deep. We’ve had multiple incidents there over the years.”
Having himself been subject to the dangers of the area, Cowan spoke with the chief and is planning to make an alert platform with his welding school and donate it to the chief to install at Paradise Point.
The setup is planned to be fitted with a bell and life preservers to make rescues easier should it happen again.
“If we don’t get notified, get in route and get there quickly, it can be a negative outcome,” Nohr said. “Many times, everyday citizens are right there to step in and make a difference, and this is one of those opportunities where Lexi and Jessie made a difference.”
Just over a month after the incident, on Thursday, Aug. 27, a ceremony was held to award the three citizen heroes with letters of commendation from the fire department.
Though the recognition was fun for the heroes, the act of doing what was right outweighed everything else.
“I’m very grateful, but my main concern was if the girls were going to be OK,” DuBay said. “I wasn’t worried about getting an award or being recognized, because I know in my heart that I did help someone and didn’t need the world to see it.”
The same sentiment was echoed by both Taylor and Dorsey, who agreed that the recognition was nice, but it wasn’t necessary because they were just doing what they felt was right.
“Don’t be afraid to help somebody. If it’s something that needs attention immediately, help them,” Taylor said. “If it’s something you can call to 911, let them handle it.”
