Sandcastle lifeguards save a life on mission trip

By: Jared Calvert, Marketing Supervisor and Mark Frazee, Content Manager

Every year, Sandcastle lifeguards Dana Weber and Josh Mains head to the Appalachian Mountains with their church community on a mission trip to help build homes for the less fortunate.  At the end of this year's busy week, the group went to a nearby lake to unwind – when suddenly, a young man in the group called for help while he was out for a swim.

Weber and Mains immediately jumped into action.

“I was swimming in from out towards the center of the lake, back to the beach, and I looked over and saw one of my friends. He looked like he was struggling, but I wasn't completely sure,” Weber recalls. "I swam over to him and he was bobbing up and down, kind of gurgling the water, asking for help. He started to slowly sink, so as I got there I pulled him right back up and yelled for help."

Once Weber and a few others safely got to the young man to shore, Mains came over to assist by cooling the boy down and helping him recover. Mains says he observed that he was weak, struggling to speak or move.

"The closest hospital was 45 minutes to an hour away," Weber explains. "So we were waiting with him on the beach, just trying to cool him down, keep track of his pulse and heartrate."

Once the ambulance arrived, the young man was taken to the hospital, where he received treatment. He was released a few hours later.

Weber and Mains credit their Sandcastle lifeguard training as preparing them for the scary situation.

“It was pretty much the know-or-go aspect,” Weber says. “If I see someone [possibly struggling] here and you’re not sure, you just go for them anyways.”

"I think the lifeguard training here really helped me in that kind of moment,” Mains adds. "I feel like before, I didn't really value just how important the training here is. When it kicked in, it was crazy."

Cheers to Dana and Josh for putting their skills to real-life use when it mattered most!