He dove to rescue his son and died in a trap in an irrigation canal in Neuquén.

On the hot afternoon of the last day of 2023, peace became a nightmare in the town of China Muerta, in Neuquén. Alejandra Fredes (41) He spent the day with his six-year-old son. Suddenly, the boy began to drown in an irrigation canal in which he was cooling off. She dove in, desperate, to rescue him. She managed to save him, but the woman was left caught in a canal trapan effect known as “siphoning”, and died.

Alejandra Fredes was from La Plata, but a few years ago she had moved to Neuquén with her son. that this Wednesday turns 7 years. She worked as a tutor at a school in Plottier, 14 kilometers west of the city of Neuquén, in addition to some personal endeavors.

On Sunday he settled down to spend the afternoon on the banks of an irrigation canal, along with his son. The critical moment came around 4:00 p.m., when the boy was playing with an inflatable in the water and was left caught in a whirlpool. The screams alerted Alejandra, who did not hesitate and dove in to save him. Against the current and the force of the water, I made it.

Although she managed to get her son out of the water, she fell prey to a trap in the irrigation canals: a dangerous effect they call “siphoning”.

The canal was not enabled for bathing, although it is popular among residents to cool off in it on days of high temperatures.

At that point, it was no longer just the bathers who helped in his rescue. The personal and emergency doctor also arrived. They managed to get it out of the canal. An ambulance took her to the Senillosa Hospital, the closest. From there she was referred to another medical center, the Castro Rendón Hospital, but it was then that her death was confirmed. due to cardiac arrest.

The child did not suffer injuries and is out of danger, although they clarified that he was affected by the accident and did not provide too many details about the situation that unfolded on Sunday.

Fredes, who had celebrated her 41st birthday in November, was a kindergarten teacher. She had experience in establishments in the Province of Buenos Aires, where she also worked in a rural school in Arroyito. But a few years ago, according to the La Plata newspaper The dayHe had bet his spirit in search of nature and moved to northern Patagonia.

Since February it was tenured preceptor at a school in Plottier, where she was based. She was also a yoga teacher and used makeup to become a clown: she was a child laughter therapist, a trade she learned in Chile.

Between messages of sadness and memories, some of Alejandra’s colleagues shared their regret on social networks, highlighting their spirit of solidarity.

“We embrace the colleagues of School 267 of Arroyito in the face of the tragic death of the Initial Level colleague Alejandra Fredes,” indicated from the board of directors of the teaching union and added: “Our solidarity with the entire educational community and her family in the face of “such a sad moment.”

Some colleagues joined in the displays of pain and accompanied their families. “Sadness! Big hug to the family and colleagues a supportive person“Wrote a colleague of Fredes.

“It is an immense pain to have to say goodbye to you,” added another colleague. Others remembered her family at such a painful moment: “My condolences to the family. Total sadness,” Viviana added.

The one who said goodbye to her with an emotional message was Erika, a friend who lives in Puerto Madryn. On her Facebook account, she dedicated a poem to him.

“Clown”, headed the text, for his work in laughter therapy. “We know how we come / the mystery is how we leave / The souls fulfill their flights / the people fulfill their mission / and I, sister, pray for You / that you find wherever you go / Peace, Love and the Tribe.”

And prepared: “Travel free and painless” knowing that Aukancito will always be with a sea of ​​fires of pure music, art and heart. We love you, we honor and embrace you and we are grateful for the beautiful happy moments shared, for the affection and laughter, for returning to the embrace in love. May you rest in peace beautiful Alita!

In recent days, in addition to the start of the holidays, another factor prompted Patagonians to approach the water bodies. The region is going through days of high temperatures, which reached 38 degrees.

But the heat sometimes makes us forget the risks and that is why in recent days other similar cases have been repeated in Patagonia.

Javier Francisco Mora (52 years old) It was cooling off on Saturday on Jordan Island, on the banks of the Negro River, in Neuquén. As happened with Alejandra, her son jumped into the water to look for a ball, but began to drown. Then, the man jumped in to save the boy. He made it, but he could no longer get out of the river. He was missing for five days until local authorities finally found his body.

It all started on Saturday, December 23 at 5 p.m., when Mora shared a day out with her children on Jordan Island, south of Cipolletti (the city where she lived) and right on the border with the province of Río Negro.

Minutes after starting the walk, one of the young people jumped into the river to recover the soccer ball, which had fallen into the water. The current began to drag him. Then it was his father who jumped into the riverbed to save him. The boy was unharmed, but the man was carried away by the force of the river.

From there a search began that concluded five days later in the same area where she was last seen.

Mora’s death occurred hours before the death of police officer Judith Yamile Aillapan, who on Monday, December 25, in the middle of the Christmas celebration, jumped into the Azul River north of Lago Puelo to rescue her children. She managed to save them, but she was pulled out of the water with serious symptoms of asphyxiation and was admitted to the hospital dead.

According to witness accounts, despite managing to get his children to safety, the non-commissioned officer had become trapped in the turbulent waters, which triggered an intense rescue operation.

Julián Cayún, director of Civil Defense of Lago Puelo, explained that the incident took place about 200 meters from the confluence of the Blanco and Azul rivers, where turbulence and significant flow complicate rescue situations.

Added to these cases, also at the end of the year, were two people who drowned in Mina Clavero less than 48 hours apart.