Brazilian pastor, wife die trying to save 13-year-old son from drowning

A beach trip with a Brazilian family ended in tragedy when a pastor and his wife died while attempting to save their 13-year-old son from drowning.

Felisberto Sampaio, 43, and his wife Inalda Sampaio, 42, spotted their son Ian Sampaio going underwater at Camaçari Beach in Paraíba last Tuesday.

The couple went into the ocean to rescue the boy but were unable to reach him.

Ian was then rescued by a fisherman and another family member, according to Brazilian news outlet UOL. The good Samaritans pulled the drowning parents into the boat.

Video footage showed a fireman frantically trying to save the life of Felisberto by administering CPR while Inalda was lying on the sand unresponsive.

Both Felisberto and Inalda were declared dead at the scene by paramedics.

The couple’s oldest son, Issac, told TV Borborema that he last saw his parents on January 8 at their home and that planned to visit the following day.

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‘The thing that goes through people’s minds is that it’s a lie,’ he said.

Felisberto was the pastor for 12 years at the Assembly of God Church in Quixaba, Paraíba.

The family lived in Campina Grande and were spending a couple of days in the Paraíba city of Lucena.

The couple’s tragic death was mourned by churchgoers, including Leonardo Meneses, a pastor at a church Felisberto and Inalda frequently attended.

‘I know that the circumstances are painful and difficult for us to understand; only eternity will explain all the mysteries of life’, he said.