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bcjh t1_jddj0wh wrote

This happened to me when I was kid. Random stranger saved me from the crazy undertow as I was getting swept out to sea and intense waves almost making me drown.

Meanwhile my dad was laying in the sand soaking up the sun and has no idea if ever happened.

Thank you random stranger for pulling me ashore.

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Raffy87 t1_jddp0gj wrote

no problem

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Accomplished-Yak5660 t1_jddqhz5 wrote

Precisely why I love Reddit

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outsideyourbox4once t1_jddttc0 wrote

Ah yes, the five minute rule to take credit

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crossingpins t1_jdg83s1 wrote

There's not many places on the internet you'll find such touching reunions 🥲

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PhaliceInWonderland t1_jdee2zp wrote

My dad was drinking beers on the beach and didn't want to go out while the tide was down.

Me (10-12), another young girl (9-10), and her mom ventured out. My dad came down to tell us were too far out and we need to come in because the tide was coming in. None of us wanted to come back in and the the tide came in on all 4 of us and we got caught in one of these. I almost watched my dad and her mom die. They told us to leave them and go back to shore while they were basically drowning.

We almost died and we got saved by a dude on the beach named Brian with an air mattress.

I don't fuck with water much anymore. That was some scary shit.

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youy23 t1_jdemn22 wrote

> They told us to leave them and go back to shore while they were basically drowning.

Jesus christ

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PhaliceInWonderland t1_jder1px wrote

It was quite traumatic watching her panic and basically try to drown my dad while he was trying to get them to swim into shore. She was kicking and flailing under water and hitting him because she was freaking out.

0/10 do not recommend

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TheNoHeadacheEscape t1_jdfhfnt wrote

>She was kicking and flailing under water and hitting him because she was freaking out.

Not humblebragging, but when I was about 13 I saved a drowning kid (couldn't have been over 7) who swam out too far.

Kid did the same thing and almost brought me under with him, it's a miracle we even made it back to shore, especially considering the amount of times he kicked me in sensitive areas, but the adrenaline rush of almost drowning kinda muted the pain from those.

Definitely do not recommend.

Edit: To note, I didn't know what I was doing, I had no training, I just reacted, and honestly, that was the biggest mistake. I should've grabbed a floatie or something.

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softcore_UFO t1_jdfnkup wrote

My sister did this to me in a pool, I ended up holding my breath long enough to sort of… shuttle her crazy ass to the edge. Fast forward twenty years later we’re at a family thing and she says, “remember that time you almost drowned me?”. Little shit freaked out so bad she rewrote her memory.

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_iplo t1_jdfjwu8 wrote

Lifeguard training teaches you to avoid direct contact with a drowning victim. This is why.

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TheNoHeadacheEscape t1_jdfo1jx wrote

Yup, and at the time I knew nothing of that. Honestly it was a miracle we both survived. When I finally got to shore I just laid on my back unable to even move for a good few minutes.

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_iplo t1_jdfojll wrote

Experience is never a bad thing. You're a good person.

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AppetizerDessert t1_jdggi05 wrote

It also teaches you to kick or punch them in the gut to regain some distance.

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Loggerdon t1_jdg0e6q wrote

When I was about 10 I saved a kid who fell down a sewer and into the pipe after a heavy rain. My friends and I took off the lid and I climbed in. Then I dropped a rope down the 20' pipe and pulled the kid out. The kid didn't speak English and as soon as he got out him and his brother ran away. The cops stopped by later and patted me on the back.

Next day another kid did the same thing and he was on the news and the mayor of Los Angeles gave him a fucking medal.

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thepeskynorth t1_jdhikrs wrote

This is why they say to approach someone drowning from behind and/or send a flotation device ahead of you otherwise they can drown you….

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Boloar t1_jdfvwy0 wrote

> Jesus Christ

... was clearly absent, it was Brian with an air mattress

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peoplebuttspongecake t1_jdevzcn wrote

>We almost died and we got saved by a dude on the beach named Brian with an air mattress.

Tell me more about this "Brian with an air mattress". Was he using the air mattress as a floaty? Was he camping on the beach? I'm intrigued.

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PhaliceInWonderland t1_jdexste wrote

I don't know what his circumstances were to have an air mattress at the beach but thinking about it now I think he or his party were using it as a float.

We were screaming for help and the crowd on the beach thought it was kids playing but he happened to have been in the area the whole time and saw us go out and he sprung into action.

This was in Rocky Point Mexico and I am 34 now. This was 20 something years ago. We were from Phoenix and he was from Tucson.

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A-Very-Cool-Pencil t1_jdea0o7 wrote

I was drunk on a 10 dollar boogie board in Hawaii, getting sucked under fighting for my life, only to make it back to the surface to be laughed at by a bunch of locals watching. Good times.

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wpcodemonkey t1_jdf4ynx wrote

Getting pulled under and tossed around like you’re in a washing machine is no joke. Same thing happened to me in Cape Cod when I was a kid. It probably only lasted 5-10 seconds but it felt like 3-5 minutes and you have no idea which way is up or down. Fucking terrifying.

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229-northstar t1_jdhk685 wrote

Same thing happened to me in a cape Cod! We were getting the far edges of a hurricane and the water was rough. It was fun until it wasn’t. The water pinned me under and rolled me until it didn’t want me any more.

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actibus_consequatur t1_jdep6ab wrote

Nearly the same except it was my oldest sister who was rescuing me... Right up until my panicking caused me to start choking her out, thus causing some random dude to help save both of us.

Also, my dad watched as I thought I was gonna drown in my neighborhood pool after my overconfident 6 year old ass jumped into the deep end. While he was probably slightly drunk, not much he could've done given he was disabled. When I climbed out of the pool, he just looked at me, smirked, and said "Bet you're not gonna try that again, huh?"

ETA: Should've pointed out, the reason he was smirking is because he realized I (probably) be all right for the same reason I figured out a couple weeks later: I was over 4' tall while the pool was only 5' deep, so I could stand flat footed in the deep end and have most my forearm above water. Dad saw in my panic was bouncing to safety.

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Thatbluejacket t1_jdg8j3c wrote

I almost died one time in a similar circumstance as your second story.

I must have been like 4 or something, and we were hanging out at my mom's friend's pool. Her daughter was probably around 12 or 13, standing in the water and catching me when I jumped in - there was no deep end, but it was still over my head. After a bit she decided to get out, but I still wanted to swim so I jumped again and immediately started sinking.

I remember thrashing around a lot, but quickly realized it didn't matter. My mom and her friend were sitting on the deck chatting and didn't see me jump I guess - in reality it was probably less than 10 seconds til my mom noticed I was missing, but it felt way longer. Right as I'd literally accepted I was about to die, I saw the shadow of my mom stand up very suddenly and jump into the water. She must have pulled me out of the pool, but that's what I remember most vividly - a snapshot of her shadow against the sun, seen through the surface of the water.

I'm extremely lucky my mom was always so vigilant - lots of children die every year from drowning in pools while literally surrounded by adults. My sister and I started taking swim lessons right after that incident. Sorry to ramble, I'm a bit high and you just reminded me

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actibus_consequatur t1_jdgkil3 wrote

Well that's a terrible way to get it, that sounds like a pretty awesome mental picture to have.

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chahoua t1_jdhczb3 wrote

I've heard so many stories like this that whenever I'm at a party or event where there's water and very young kids involved I can't take my eyes off the kids for more than a few seconds.

Having a kid die like that where you could have easily saved the child if you paid enough attention would be something I'd have a hard time recovering from.

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mmabet69 t1_jdgbeak wrote

Bro literally I did this to a kid on a vacation one time and still think about it from time to time. The kids dad didn’t even seem concerned but the kid I grabbed was super panicked and I could see him getting dragged further and further out until I got him on my back and we swam with the waves back into shore.

Glad it was appreciated

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Alekillo10 t1_jdeylxe wrote

That was an angel no doubt

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Delicious-Studio-101 t1_jdl88qf wrote

Exact same thing happened to me, too! Except it was my grandparents lying on the beach, none the wiser.

I’m sort of afraid of water to this day. I learned to swim later, but I’ve never felt completely comfortable in water, and the discomfort grows with age.

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