Joseph D. Donnell

Joseph D. Donnell rescued Paxton K. Knight from drowning, Oakley, Utah, August 22, 2022. Paxton, 9, was in a pickup truck that entered a reservoir from a boat ramp in a national park. The truck drifted 75 feet from the dock and fully submerged in 9 feet of water. Donnell, 55, retired state park ranger, was in his kayak in the 60-degree water. Donnell removed his life jacket, exited his kayak, and dived below the surface of the water and went to the truck, where he fully entered through a passenger-side door. Donnell searched for Paxton, but he could not find him. He entered the truck twice more before he swam to the driver’s side, where both doors were locked. Donnell struck the cab’s rear window, but it did not break. Donnell returned to the passenger side of the truck and again entered through the open rear door. He extended his arms into the front-seat area of the truck and found Paxton floating near the top of the front windshield. Donnell grasped Paxton, held him to his chest, and backed out of the truck, then swam to the surface. Donnell swam back to shore and placed Paxton, who did not have a pulse and was not breathing, on the concrete boat ramp. A few people at the scene performed CPR on Paxton, who had a faint pulse when he taken by helicopter to a hospital. Paxton was hospitalized in critical condition, but he recovered. Donnell was tired and cold after the rescue; he recovered.