FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - A Fort Lauderdale Police officer raced out to sea to help three swimmers who were pulled by a rip current and then was forced to fight the same rough waters.
Sadly, one of the victims would not survive.
The tense rescue unfolded off Fort Lauderdale Beach on the evening of Feb. 7.
Speaking with 7News on Monday, FLPD Officer John Rose said the lifeguards had just gone off duty for the day.
“The ocean was very choppy, very rough that day,” he said.
Rose said he struggled to steady his boat as it swayed back and forth, but he was able to come close to the swimmers in distress.
“Two of the subjects were attempting to keep the third subject above the water, not very well because it was so rough out,” he said.
Rose’s body camera video captured the interaction between the officer and the victims.
“Come on, just push on the door, push on the door. Can you get in? Come on, guys,” Rose told the swimmers.
Rose was eventually able to pull all three men out of the water and onto the boat safely.
The officer said a helping hand arrived just in time.
“Once they were in my vessel, [a Broward Sheriff’s Office boat] pulled up,” he said. “One of their deputies jumped on board and immediately started CPR.”
That was when, Rose said, he realized that time was critical.
“What I decided to do was beach the boat, because fire rescue was already right here in front of me, and for me to run all the way inland would have taken another 10 minutes,” he said.
Rose rode an incoming wave and planted his boat to a sandbar, allowing lifeguards and first responders to jump in and take it from there.
Rescue crews rushed all three swimmers to the hospital, where one of them later died.
The other two swimmers have since been released from the hospital.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.