CARMEL, Calif. — An off-duty Carmel Valley firefighter went into the water off Carmel Beach in his street clothes on Monday afternoon to help two teenagers in distress.
Travis Alewine was walking his dog when he saw a woman concerned about her son, who was on a boogie board at least 100 yards from shore.
“She was getting worried,” Alewine said later. He used his cell phone to get emergency workers dispatched at 2:21 p.m. Alewine told the mother to get back out of the water.
When he reached the boy, “I just told him to relax,” said Alewine, who then discovered there was a girl in the water nearby. He gave them some guidance in getting to shore, and nearby surfers offered assistance.
The girl, Alewine said, had taken junior lifeguard training.
The state Parks Department and the Pacific Grove Ocean Rescue team arrived, but by then the rescue was almost finished.
The teens were cold and tired but did not need additional medical attention, said Logan Talbott, a firefighter and emergency medical technician for the Carmel Fire Department.