The Dad Couldn't Swim, Gave His Life to Save Daughter's

"This dad did everything he could"—and gave everything he could. Anthony Burgess, 24, died Sunday while attempting to rescue his 3-year-old daughter from a Pontiac G6 that hold rolled backward into an Indianapolis pond. Police say the child accidentally hit the gear shift, putting the car into neutral. The Star reports Burgess had parked at the Core Riverbend Apartments so he could talk to a friend; the girl started to get out of the car, and Burgess told her to get back inside. She apparently knocked the gear shift while climbing across the front seat, WIBC reports. After the men observed the car rolling they both jumped into the 35-degree water, though neither could swim.

The cold forced the friend back, but Burgess managed to get the girl out and pass her to a bystander who had also jumped in. Then Burgess disappeared below the surface. Fox59 reports he was in the water at least 19 minutes before being pulled out; he died Sunday night. The child was on Monday upgraded to stable condition. The car was retrieved from the pond that same day, some 50 feet from shore in water 25 feet deep. (More hero stories.)