This is what we should expect at a minimum. With all due respect, one should not have to call SWFD to learn about these tragedies.
From Destin Log on 8-2-2018:
By Staff report
Posted Aug 2, 2018 at 1:19 PM
Updated Aug 2, 2018 at 3:30 PM
March 17, Destin: Roscoe Brooks, 43, of Shannon, Mississippi, was pulled from the Gulf after a witness spotted Brooks in trouble on a boogie board around 1:15 p.m. offshore of 2700 Scenic Highway 98. Destin Beach Safety and a beach attendant rushed to his aid but reported that Brooks was unconscious and unresponsive when they pulled him ashore and began CPR. He was pronounced dead at the Destin Emergency Room.
March 26, Navarre Beach: Air Force veteran Michael Robidoux of Navarre - a good Samaritan who attempted to rescue a distressed 10-year-old swimmer on March 24 - died two days later. Crews were dispatched to lifeguard tower 3 to assist three distressed swimmers around 6:14 p.m. A firefighter tried to get to the swimmers by riding a personal watercraft, but the rough surf did not allow it. Two nearby surfers saved the two young swimmers, but a witness reported that a third good Samaritan got caught in an undertow while trying to save one of the young swimmers. Alexander Julio, 27, a Navarre Beach resident and avid swimmer, helped pull the 10-year-old out of the water.
May 26, Crab Island: Essie Mitchell, 36, of Mobile, Alabama. was the sand bar’s first victim of the year. He died in an apparent drowning after he went down a boat slide and was then found floating face down. He was taken to Fort Walton Beach Medical Center, where the medical staff said he had water in his lungs. He was pronounced dead later that day.
July 4, Destin: Fleetwood Hines Jr., 63, of Alabama was pronounced dead at a local hospital a day after he was pulled from the Gulf of Mexico on July 3. A lifeguard from Destin Fire Control District assisted patrons who were trying to pull Hines from the water off Henderson Beach State Park in Destin. The lifeguard also performed CPR and took him to a waiting ambulance. Destin lifeguards rescued 43 people that day as rip currents were present up and down the beach. A younger person was also taken to a hospital that day, but survived.
July 5, Crab Island: The body of Pethiley Deusete Lopez Maximo, 20, of Destin was found on the morning of July 5 by divers after friends told deputies he was last seen wading in waist-high water the night before near the west side of the bridge.
July 16, Crab Island: Hamza Abusabeel, 28, from Dallas, Texas died two days after he was pulled from the water on July 14. Friends say he tried to swim from the northwest corner of the Marler Bridge to Crab Island.
July 22, Crab Island: 18-year-old Zion Foster of Pensacola became Crab Island’s fourth victim of 2018 when he was swept away in a strong current and was unable to get back to his pontoon boat. The incident almost claimed the lives of two bystanders who tried to help Foster but were unsuccessful and had to receive medical treatment. Foster’s body was found by Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office divers the next day.
Aug 1, Okaloosa Island: Sara Sebren, 19, from Pearl, Mississippi was pulled from the surf at about 8 p.m. near beach access No. 7 on Santa Rosa Boulevard. She had been swimming with friends when they said she began struggling in the water. The group was about 250 feet from shore. Her friends were able to help her to shore with the aid of a flotation device. Firefighters from the Okaloosa Island Fire District began lifesaving measures until she could be taken to the hospital by ambulance, where she was pronounced dead. The other two swimmers did not require medical treatment.