Elderly Man Drowns In Pool At West Miami-Dade Home

WEST MIAMI-DADE (CBS4) - A South Florida girl is being recognized for her bravery, while her family also mourns the loss of her grandfather.

Edgar Chaves's 10 year old granddaughter had just come in from school at around 6 p.m.  Wednesday when she made the grisly discovery outside the home on the 8200 block of Southwest 11 Terrace.

"She began to look for her grandfather.  She couldn't locate him.  She asked her grandmother.  She didn't know where he was.  And some point that granddaughter looked outside and notice her grandfather was actually submerged inside the pool," said Miami-Dade Police spokesperson Roy Rutland.

The girl called 911, then ran outside to do what she could.

"The brave young girl then ran outside and got into the water herself and attempted to rescue her grandfather.  Unfortunately due to his size in comparison to hers she wasn't able to do it."

Chaves, 82, was pronounced dead on the scene.

It is unclear how the man ended up in the water, but he reportedly was not able to swim.

The man's family believes Chaves may have tripped and fell into the water, or may have had a heart attack. Miami-Dade Police are investigating.

"A ten year old, brave little girl, that not only goes through something so traumatic that we are trained to deal with.  But now has to live with this for the rest of her life," said Rutland.