Malcolm-Jamal Warner's tragic death while on a family vacation in Costa Rica has shocked fans of The Cosby Show star, who was travelling with his wife and daughter at the time.
Local law enforcement told ABC News that Malcolm-Jamal and his child were seen struggling in the water after being caught in a rip current, adding that a surfer "used his board to bring Warner's daughter to safety and a volunteer lifeguard pulled Warner and another surfer to shore".
The actor was then administered CPR for 45 minutes before paramedics pronounced him dead. While the second surfer who attempted to save Malcolm-Jamal and his daughter was taken to the hospital in critical condition, he is reportedly recovering after the incident.
The family had arrived in Costa Rica on July 13, a week before his drowning.
His daughter was pulled to safety by a local surfer
A spokesperson for the Judicial Investigation Agency revealed to People that the surfer "came in [the water] to help" before also falling victim to the strong current.
The 35-year-old was cared for by the Costa Rican Red Cross after they were called to attend a "water-related" incident around 2:10 p.m.
The spokesperson added that the man had no personal connection to Malcolm-Jamal and was likely trying to help after seeing him in distress.
The beach was unpatrolled due to a lack of resources
The local lifeguards released a moving statement in response to the 54-year-old's death, taking to social media to plead for more resources from the Costa Rican government.
"We deeply regret the passing of Malcolm-Jamal Warner at Playa Grande. He was swept away by a strong rip current and died by drowning," the Caribbean Guard wrote via Facebook on Monday.
The statement added that the location where he drowned was one of their "most challenging beaches" and that lifeguards had installed signs to warn of strong currents, adding that they had been called away to attend incidents at other beaches at the time.
"We do everything within our reach. We have saved numerous lives in recent years, and if the Caribbean Guard didn't exist, the number of drownings would be counted in dozens," they wrote.
"We give everything we have to minimize the risks, but without help from the government, clear public policies, and strong support from local business owners, this will continue to happen."
Malcolm-Jamal was a doting dad and shared insight into his life as a father of one on social media, despite keeping the names of his wife and daughter private.
He expressed his thanks for how his family enhanced his life with a touching Instagram post, writing: "Two lovely and beautiful spirits who enrich my life in all the ways I expected and then some. I've always been proud to be a late bloomer, so I am eternally grateful to you both for waiting for me to be ready for you and this wonder-filled wonderful life we have co-created. And I think to myself 'what a world...'".
The 9-1-1 actor shared his thanks on Father's Day, explaining that he was "one of the luckiest men in the world" for having such love for his family.
"Papa’s Day was a good day," he wrote. "The amount of love in our home is one of the things in life of which I am the most proud. The last picture is a bass guitar she made with her friend. I am one of the luckiest men in the world. My friends who've known me for the past 20+ years remind me that I deserve this. I agree. I've been working for this for a lifetime even though I didn't know it. But it’s all too clear now. Color me grateful."
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