California woman’s heartbreaking final three words to her husband moments before monster wave dragged her into ocean
A California woman uttered three heartbreaking words moments before she was swept into the ocean by a massive wave, her husband has revealed.
Kaylee Molina, 30, who was originally from Indio, died after being crushed into rocks on Sycamore Cove Beach in Ventura County on Wednesday, The Post revealed.
Her husband, Roberto Clemente, 32, was also dragged into the water but was able to crawl back to shore and call 911.
In a tear-jerking interview with the California Post, he revealed as she was being swept away she told him: “Hold my hand.”
Speaking through a brutal cough from the water he inhaled during the devastating episode, he said the pair were vacationing in California from Texas where they now lived.
They had hiked down to Sycamore Cove Beach, near Malibu, in hopes of enjoying the Pacific Ocean views at sunrise. The couple had also been to the beach the day before.
As the pair sat on the sand they noticed the waves growing closer. They decided to flee and turned their backs to the ocean.
“She tells me, ‘hold my hand, hold my hand,’ so we’re trying to hold each other’s hands, and before I know it, we’re separated,” Clemente said, stopping occasionally to sob.
The waves kept coming. The water grew deeper fast, Clemente said, and swallowed them up.
The sea swiftly pulled both of them underwater. Clemente, lungs straining and about to pass out, reemerged, using nearby rocks to pull himself ashore.
Molina’s body was in the water face down, with her colorful hair floating on the surface. She didn’t know how to swim, Clemente said.
He said he dragged her to shore and tried giving her CPR. “I tried giving her CPR, but I was so exhausted already at that point, I couldn’t do it,” he said.
He called 911 in a panic, screaming for anyone nearby to help as well. Ventura County officials arrived at 11:40 a.m. and pronounced her dead on the scene.
First responders quickly took Clemente to the hospital. He said he wanted to stay with his wife, but responders insisted he go.
he said doctors told him he was fine, but gave him tragic news about his wife. “There’s no easy way to tell you this Roberto, but Kaylee passed away,” he said the officials at the hospital told him.
Now he’s tasked with putting together a memorial for his wife, and her family has already organized a fundraiser to return her body to Texas.
Molina had three siblings and her family has said her death has “left a heartbreak in our family that words cannot fully express.”
Clemente said he still can’t believe how fast his life changed. They had been on a romantic week in SoCal with plans to camp and explore more beaches across the region.
“I wish I could have done more,” he said. “I wish I would have been smarter, not got into the water or just not gone to the beach.”
“Hold on to your loved ones because you never know,” he added. He advises anyone sitting near the water to be aware of where the nearest lifeguard is.
The pair were together for 10 years and had been living in El Paso at the time of Molina’s death. She grew up in Indio and worked as a toll collector for the city of El Paso.
Clemente plays in a band and works as a slot machine technician.
Molina’s exact cause of death is still under investigation.
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