The 48-year-old Wānaka local died trying to rescue his son in Lake Wakatipu at Glenorchy on Friday afternoon.
His heroic efforts saved his son, who was brought to shore by a Glenorchy local, but the father’s body ended up being found in the lake, 24 hours later.
It was a warm summer’s day last Friday and it was meant to have been just another fun family day out. Leroy Kaaho, known in the Wānaka area as Linkin Kisling, his partner and the couple’s three children went for a drive out to Glenorchy.
They had not planned to go into the lake but took what his wife Siana describes as a "spontaneous trip" and, once there, decided to spend some time exploring.
The children had their togs, the weather was warm, the lake looked inviting, and there were plenty of other people around the area.
"We hopped out, saw a lot of people, walked down to the wharf, saw the sandbar, the kids had their togs so we thought they’d have a swim," Siana said.
She recalled the moment they told their two boys, aged 10 and 12, who were in the water, that it was time to come back.
"We yelled to the boys ‘come back’, the boys said ‘we can’t, we’re trying’.
"Linkin just took his top off, no hesitation, and ran in. Without any question, he just ran out."
The older son managed to get himself out of the water, as Mr Kisling tried to reach his 10-year-old boy.
"Then I saw Linkin was struggling, he started calling out.
"I went and as soon as I stepped in, I dropped and then I was struggling myself, but my oldest son managed to grab my hand, pulled me up and I was just keeping an eye out because I could see them bobbing and then by the time I got up, I was waving my arms because there were people, but they weren’t close enough to see."
Two men eventually saw Siana waving in distress and ran over. "I said please help my husband and sons out there."
"One, I believe his name was Oscar, swam up to my son, managed to flip him over and he got him back and I just kept my eyes on Linkin just to ensure that he was there."
Another man told her he could not swim but went in to help. By then, Mr Kisling was underwater.
His body was found 24 hours later, on Saturday.
"Those 24 hours were a daze. I was in shock, in disbelief, I could hear my children screaming and crying," Siana said.
The family is forever grateful to the Glenorchy community who rallied around them to support them while authorities searched for Mr Kisling’s body.
"I was in shock, my children needed that comfort and they did it.
"There was a midwife who came, took my son’s pulse, got him a blanket. They stayed until the end. I am very grateful to everyone who was there with us."
Callan Grimmer, who helped lead the search, said the man’s body was found on the lake bed about 50m from the Rees River mouth about 3pm on Saturday.
The police national dive squad had been called in.
He said there had been a great effort from the wider public on Friday to help the family, and two helicopters and seven boats, including five from Dart River Adventures, were involved in the initial search.
Mr Kisling was a stay-at-home father to his three young children.
He was passionate about physical activity and holistic health. He had also recently taken up taken gardening as a hobby.
For the family, while it is tough to accept that a man as fit and healthy as Mr Kisling died in such a tragic way, the focus is on how he died — trying to save his son’s life.
"He was so fit, so active, played rugby till last year, never smoked, didn’t drink, and was a confident swimmer," his sister Melissa said.
Melissa, her brother Jason and Mr Kisling’s eldest daughter Trinity, flew from Australia as soon as they heard the news.
"He was a dedicated father to the very end. He lived for his children and he died for his children," she said.
"He wouldn’t have wanted to live if his child had died and he had lived," her brother Jason added.
"Me and my father were inseparable and absolutely best friend so it’s a very, very, very big loss," Trinity said.
"Dad was a big inspiration and just my absolute everything ..."
The family, originally from Auckland, were invited by local iwi to attend a service on Sunday in the area where Mr Kisling died.
A rahui is in place on an area that covers Glenorchy and the Dart River end of Lake Wakatipu until 3pm today.
