Lifeguards, Bystanders Rescue Man From YMCA Pool

Police in Lowell, Massachusetts, say swift action by two lifeguards and a pair of bystanders saved a man from drowning at the Greater Lowell YMCA pool.

This was the first submerged rescue in 15 years at the Lowell YMCA, and these lifeguards knew exactly what to do to save a man's life.

"I usually scan left to right and then I go right to left and then I repeat it," said lifeguard Janavi Patel.

"You always hammer home scanning is the most important part. If you're not watching, you're going to miss something," said Katherine Davis, aquatics director.

In lifeguard terms, scanning is everything, from the shallow end to the deep end. And on Sunday, scanning was the first step in saving a life.

"When I was sitting on the chair, I was watching the family swim area," Patel said.

Sunday started as it often does at the Greater Lowell YMCA, but it didn't end that way.

"He was close to the bottom and he wasn't moving," Patel added.

"He was face down initially. We flipped him over, felt for a pulse, couldn't feel one," said lifeguard Nikki Rivera.

Patel was poolside.

Unlike today, on Sunday at 11 in the morning, the pool was busy, filled with several families. A man was swimming in the deep end, and then he wasn't.

"I only looked for two seconds. No he's not moving at all. And then I blew my whistle. I only blew it twice, I'm supposed to blow it three times, but I just jumped in, went under, and got him," Patel said.

We'll allow her a pass after what happened next.

"I tried to pull him the right way but I couldn't, so I just wanted to get him out as fast I could. So I grabbed onto his hips and his shorts and I just started kicking," Patel said.

Nikki Rivera then did CPR with another guard and they saved the man's life.

"Your brain is three steps ahead of you, while your hands are a step behind," Rivera said.

It's what they're trained to do.

"Had it not been for the actions taken by these two young ladies, this story most assuredly would have had a much different outcome," said Lowell Police Capt. Thomas Kennedy.

There were nine lifeguards on duty and they're sharing the credit with people at the pool that day for their help.

Authorities think the man had a medical episode. He went to Lowell General Hospital where he was treated and released.

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