An inquisitive boy, 11, almost drowned around noon on Monday after being sucked into a storm drain of rushing water after he stuck the toe of his boot into rushing water in Newbury Park.

If not for the actions of Jake Wood’s sister, Rachel, 14, he would’ve drowned, said his mother, Dennise Wood.

“When she realized Jake couldn’t stand up in the 2 to 3 feet of rushing water and he was heading toward a storm drain tunnel, Rachel went in after him and said, ‘Hold on to me. We’re going to experience this together,’” their mom said.

Kyle Koh, a sixth-grade friend, was with the Wood siblings experiencing the rain at Banyan Park when the three decided to throw sticks in the rushing water.

When the water took his friends away, Kyle went for help and found someone with a cellphone to call 911.

According to Ventura Fire Department Capt. Ron Oatman, when emergency help arrived, the children were already safe.

“Right before a drop-off, Rachel told Jake to ‘grab hold of that ladder or we’re both going to die,’” Dennise Wood said.

He did, and the two were able to climb out.

The siblings, who in the days before were fighting with each other over “stupid stuff,” got out of the water and hugged, their mother said.

His sister has since been advised that jumping in after someone is a bad idea because of the risk to her life, too.

But she has told her mother, “I would do it again; I just had to save him.”

—Nancy Needham