Richard Weinert-Soto was at Adventure Park in Visalia, California, when he fell at the Sequoia Springs attraction around 5 p.m. on Saturday, August 24, according to his mother, Maria Velasco, who spoke with KSEE.
Velasco recounted, “A little girl came up to me and said, ‘I think your little boy is lying up there.’ I ran up and found him blue and purple.”
Park staff performed CPR on Richard before he was rushed to Kaweah Health Medical Center. Despite their efforts, he was pronounced dead at 9:26 p.m.
A GoFundMe page for his funeral expenses described Richard as having been “having fun, running around… and being a normal kid” before his heart stopped. It added, “He fought until the end and left many beautiful memories behind.”
Richard was born with heart and lung conditions; his heart was positioned on the wrong side of his body, and he had undergone six successful open-heart surgeries. He also struggled with chronic lung failure.
The fundraiser described him as “the happiest, most loving, and kind boy” who enjoyed singing at church, discussing God’s love, and making others laugh. “Not many people saw the full picture of what Richard endured daily.”
Adventure Park confirmed that “a child suffered from a cardiac emergency while waiting in line for the waterslides.”
