The family of a missing British dad feared dead after jumping into a lake to save his son said the tragedy is "unimaginable".
Aran Chada vanished after leaping into Lake Garda in Italy to rescue his 14-year-old son who had got into difficulty while swimming off a hired boat on Friday afternoon.
The oil executive, 51, from Woodhouse Eaves, Leicestershire, managed to drag his teen son back to the vessel before his mum pulled him aboard.
But he then began to struggle for breath and slipped under the water himself.
It is thought he had suffered a seizure due to cold water shock with the water said to be 10 degrees cooler than the air temperature.
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Aran was celebrating his birthday with partner Holly Mosley, 39, as well as his son and daughter, seven.
They had rented the 500m boat for a couple of hours and were due to take it back when the tragedy occurred.
A major search operation was launched to find Aran.
Holly's brother James told The Sun: “It's devastating. What my sister and the family is going through is unimaginable.”
Coastguard commander Antonello Ragadale told the Sunday Times, Ms Mosley screams alerted other boats to the emergency.
The coastguard and a rescue team including a helicopter and divers raced to the scene and rescue efforts were said to have continued late into Friday night and resumed on Saturday.
A robot submarine was deployed to search the deep lake, which has a maximum depth of 346m in places.
The family are understood to be staying in the four-star Hotel du Lac et Du Parc at Riva del Garda and being offered support from police and a psychologist.
Mr Ragadale said: "This man was a hero and we fear he drowned, but we’re doing everything we can to find his body.
"This is a real tragedy, and the desperation in their faces was evident.
"He did what any father would have done for his son."
The Foreign Office said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who has been reported missing in Italy and are in contact with the Italian police.”
