Andrew Pasek was walking through flooded waters on Tuesday to rescue his sister’s cat when he was electrocuted. His dying words were a warning to his childhood friend to stay away, lest he be caught in the electrical current as well.
His sister, Alyssa, devastated by the news, begged for a miracle in a grief-stricken post on Facebook.
“My family will never be the same. He was only trying to help and I should have been there. He was such an amazing brother and person and I am going to miss him so much. I just want to call his phone and hear his voice and wake up from this terrible nightmare,” she wrote.
In a tragic twist, Andrew was the second Pasek child to pass away after brother E.J. Donnelley died in a car crash in 1993.
Pasek’s mother, Jodell Pasek, was trying to make sense of the tragedy.
“I’m pulling my strength from the fact I’ve been through it once and I can get through it,” Jodell mother told KPRC Houston.
Jodell has been warning others about the risk of unseen electrical dangers, using her son’s death to help others. Friends of Andrew on Facebook have also been calling for evacuees to make sure they turn off their main electrical breaker when leaving.
“They couldn’t even help my son. They couldn’t resuscitate him. He was in electrified water,” said Jodell.
Pasek is the third reported death of a person electrocuted while attempting a rescue.
Yahir Vizueth, 25, and Jorge Perez, 31, are confirmed dead after the boat they were using to rescue stranded flood victims was overpowered by rushing water and forced towards live power lines. Two other men, who were also on board are still missing.
Andrew was a known animal lover. Photos and videos shared by friends capture his tussles with a variety of pets. His decision to go take care of this sister’s cat, left alone at her flooded home in the rush of rising waters, wasn’t a surprise to anyone.
Pasek picked up childhood friend Sean Stuart on route and the pair waded through several feet of water to get to Alyssa’s home when they went through a neighbor’s yard, where the water was shallower, Alyssa told KPRC.
That is where the wire was—a landscape light, still live, Andrew’s mother, Jodell Pasek, told ABC.
Andrew knew Stuart would be caught by the electricity if he came any closer, so he warned him to stay away.
Pasek’s death has stirred sentiment from around the world as Jodell has tried to use it to save others from a similar fate. Condolences and Facebook comments from as far away as France and Australia have lamented his passing.
Andrew’s girlfriend, Allie Renay Arton, has shared an album of photos and videos of Andrew with friends and family, revealing a fun-loving young drummer in a warm relationship who was a friend of dogs and an occasional goofball.
Friends described him as upbeat and intelligent.
“You always made us laugh and smile & brought us closer to the little things,” wrote one. “Thank you for amazing friendship. I will miss you bud. Love you.”
