A group of Good Samaritans jumped into action (and into the water) to help save a family after their truck drove through a marina barrier and plunged into the water in Long Beach, Calif., on Saturday.
“No sooner did I hop in the water and the lifeguard captain was handing over the older lady to me,” rescuer Jeff Perez told KBCS News.
Jeff Jones, a witness who shot video of the incident and also ran to alert the lifeguard station, says everything happened so quickly.
“It was very hectic. Firetrucks came. It just was a bit chaotic,” he said.
Security video from Seacoast Yachts shows a second angle of the rescue, as the truck drives over a parking block and through a barrier before plunging into the water.
“They just came barreling right through. I turned around and… it was just one of those things,” Jones said.
The woman’s son was behind the wheel when it went through the barrier with his window partially down.
Video shows the son handing their dog to rescuers through the partially open window. Rescuers then attempted to push the partially-open window down, but witnesses told KCBS that the windows appeared to rise as the water rushed in.
The video also shows rescuers pulling the mother out of the passenger-side window.
Long Beach Police Lt. Robert Woods tells Global News that they’re not sure how the vehicle went forward, but that their Traffic Collision investigators will be handling the matter.
Perez said he wouldn’t hesitate to help again.
“I would just hope that people would do the right thing and that’s what we are all here for. To help one another. For support.”
There were no injuries reported and the family dog was also pulled to safety.