A teen lifeguard, who heroically dove into pounding waves to save a young boy, will be honored by President Donald Trump at the White House.
“We’re going to bring this heroic young man, and his family, into the White House with, perhaps, the boy he saved, to give him a High Civilian Honor,” Trump announced on X July 28. “Very brave, he deserves it!”
The lifeguard, Ryder Williams, 16, rescued the 10-year-old boy on July 25 at Seabright Beach, about 6 miles east of the popular Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and about 60 miles south of San Francisco.
A witness, Scott Vander Dussen, posted the viral video of the rescue on Instagram.
In the clip, Williams is seen running into the rough water before he grabs the boy around the chest. The boy appeared to be exhausted and going limp, and unable to hold onto the lifeguard as relentless waves crashed over them.
The two were overcome with high surf multiple times before Williams was able to pull the boy close enough to the beach to be aided by another lifeguard and members of the public.
“That boy was moments from not coming back,” Vander Dussen said in a social media post on X. “A few seconds, a few degrees, a few yards of distance, and this is a very different story with a very different ending.”
Vander Dussen told NBC-owned KNTV-TV the waves were at “normal intensity” one moment and then suddenly changed.
“It caught a lot of people off guard,” Vander Dussen said. “Unfortunately, this young man was overwhelmed and swept out in just a moment’s time. I’m glad it ended the way it did.”
A series of tropical storms and hurricanes, including Fausto and Genevieve, has impacted the California coast since late last week, resulting in higher surf and hazardous conditions.
The National Weather Service issued a beach hazard advisory this week for the central California coastline. Forecasters warned of an increased risk of sneaker waves and strong rip currents. Breaking waves could reach up to 10 feet along some beaches, the weather service said.
“Remain out of the water to avoid hazardous surf and never turn your back on the ocean,” the advisory read.
California State Parks, which operates the lifeguard program at Santa Cruz, said thousands of ocean rescues happen every year.
“Our State Park lifeguards courageously risk their own lives every day to keep our visitors safe,” California State Parks spokesman Tyler Hersko told The Epoch Times. “Their dedication never goes unnoticed and they are truly heroes to their local communities, Californians and the nation.”
The department employs about 600 seasonal lifeguards every summer and about 70 permanent lifeguards who make about 10,000 rescues every year, according to Hersko.
Since the start of the month, the lifeguards have made 3,600 rescues and provided 1,600 cases of medical aid.
State Parks didn’t say whether Williams had accepted the president’s invitation to the White House.
