Man knew it was do-or-die moment when a 3-year-old fell 15 feet into a waterfall — his next move rescued her bravely

The mom saw her daughter falling into the water in seconds and had no idea what had happened to her.

PUBLISHED JUN 2, 2025

(L) A wide-angle shot of a waterfall (R) A mom and daughter kissing each other. (Cover Image Source: (L) Pexels |Adrien Daurenjou; (R) YouTube | @4029news)

Some rescues seem like nothing short of a miracle. On May 20, 2025, a 3-year-old daughter fell 15 feet near Tanyard Creek, Bella Vista, Arkansas, where she was hiking with her mom. Everything happened in a rush that the mom, Kiya Livingston, could not comprehend what to do apart from getting there after her daughter, Melody. Livingston did not know what happened to Melody after falling from such an altitude. However, a stranger stepped in to save the girl, who scooped her out from a rock bed, per KFSM.

A waterfall and a stream. Representative Image Source: Pexels | Francesco Ungaro

Melody was swept away by a waterfall while on an outing at Tanyard Creek with her mom. "We went there to hike, have fun. We were going to go to the lakes, go swimming. I was like, 'Let's go to the waterfalls,'" Livingston recounted. "I was sitting on the rocks; she was standing on the bridge with her friends. They were throwing rocks, and we told her not to get too close. Then, somehow, she just stuck her foot in there and she was gone." Livingston pointed out that they had visited the spot at least 3 to 4 times in the past, but this time, the water level was much higher than before due to the recent storms. She immediately went searching for Melody, who had already fallen into the current.

A little girl sitting close to a water body. Representative Image Source: Pexels | Abdel Rahman Abu Baker

"The current was my first thought, but she was gone. By that moment, she was underwater, she had already fallen down," Livingston recalled. She went down with her sister, and by the time they reached there, a man had already taken Melody out of the water and rescued her. "The man that saved her had already jumped in, and they said that she did not end up having to get CPR. She was thankfully fully wedged between a rock that held her underwater, held her in place, where he was able to scoop her up," the mom explained. The girl also did not have any major injuries from the fall, and her mom felt that it was a miracle from God.

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"I think yesterday was completely on God. When I couldn't get to the water, I had nobody to call on but God. He was right there," Kiya continued. The girl had fallen in a few seconds, and the group spent the next 30 minutes in complete panic without any idea of how to get to her. "It was just like something you see in a movie. I saw her purple outfit, and then I saw her hand," Livingston told KHBS. "My first thing is to just get in there." The mom was panicking and couldn't get to her daughter right at the moment, and felt that her baby was "gone."

Soon enough, she saw a man pulling Melody out, and she was grateful for the help as the current was so strong. Livingston was also thankful that she had people to help her through each step of the way that day, making the situation a lot easier. People stayed till the little girl got into an ambulance in case the family needed any help. "The doctor says that she only survived because she is so small," Livingston pointed out. "I am really thankful for the man who jumped into the current and scooped her out and brought her back to life." The doctors wondered how the girl was completely unharmed after the incident, and the mom wanted to reach out to the man to thank him for what he did.