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Friday, March 29, 2024

Bystanders rescue drowning man at Wrightsville

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A group of bystanders — that included a doctor and a nurse — pulled a drowning man out of the ocean at Wrightsville Beach’s Johnnie Mercer’s Pier Saturday, May 14, and gave him cardiopulmonary resuscitation until lifeguards arrived and restored his breathing and consciousness.

The man was responding to questions when he was transferred off the beach. Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue Capt. Jeremy Owens gave credit to the beachgoers who brought him in and immediately started emergency medical treatment.

“Getting those first breaths into him is paramount,” Owens said. “Thanks to the quick action of bystanders, it was the most positive outcome it could have been.”

Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue personnel only monitor the beach until about 5 p.m., but Owens said they were still patrolling when a 911 call came in around 5:15 p.m. He described the situation when they arrived at Johnnie Mercer’s Pier a couple of minutes later as “chaotic” because a large group assisted in the rescue.

The doctor and nurse were performing CPR on the man. Although he had a pulse, Owens said, he “was not breathing adequately.”

The lifeguards ventilated him with a bag valve mask and were able to restore his breathing. By the time he was taken off the beach, he was conscious and speaking to rescuers.

Owens said the incident “was definitely rip current related.” While the ocean surface was calm Saturday evening, there is a fixed rip current underneath Johnnie Mercer’s Pier that Owens said the man got caught in. That rip current is why the town installed signs warning not to swim within 200 feet on either side of the pier, he said.

“That rip current underneath Johnnie Mercer’s Pier is there every single day, whether it’s completely flat or whether we have surf,” he said. “Some people aren’t very strong swimmers, and if they get into that rip it will just pull them out.”

Rip currents can form up and down the beach, he added. Even when the ocean appears gentle swimmers must be alert, especially now when a limited staff of lifeguards is working.

Currently, ocean rescue staff patrols the beach during the week in two trucks. On weekends they add three ATVs, so they have five vehicles patrolling.

“We have a presence, but we’re not fully staffed,” Owens said. “We’re patrolling the beaches, reacting to any sorts of situations like this, but there’s still a response time.”

Starting the Friday before Memorial Day, the full staff will return to man the 13 lifeguard stands from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Following tryouts in April, ocean rescue hired 32 full-time guards and a number of part-time guards for the summer, Owens said.

They started training together on the beach this week in preparation for the season. They are scheduled to complete their annual lifeguard challenge — a rigorous, hours-long test of fitness and lifesaving skills — on beach strand Thursday, May 26.

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1 COMMENT

  1. My name is Erin Dodge. I was one of the people who swam out to help. I have been back and forth as to whether I should reach out because I do not want recognition but I would like to find the man that helped me swim this man out from under the pier. I had to let go once I saw the human chain because I knew I would be in danger if I stayed out any longer. I grew up on Wrightsville Beach, reside in Wilmington NC, and I have never witnessed anything like this. It was extremely terrifying yet very touching to see how a group of strangers came together to save a life. I held that man’s head in my hands and I will never forget the feeling when I heard that he lived. If anyone knows where I can find the one gentleman who helped me before the crowd took over, please email me. [email protected] Thank you.

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