Exclusive | Desperate final moments of two ambitious friends swept to their deaths from notorious California beach
The two friends killed after being swept into the ocean in Santa Cruz County became trapped by a freak wave and pulled underwater by the punishing surf, authorities revealed — as a rescuer detailed the treacherous conditions that claimed their lives.Harshita Nair, 21, and Mahial Sran, 20, both of Fremont, had made their way through a keyhole at Panther Beach in Bonny Doon to sunbathe last Wednesday when they were sealed off from escape by “sneaker wave” just before sunset, officials said. The rescue swimmer who brought Sran ashore told The California Post that he dove into the freezing, 6-foot shore break, along with his partner, to rescue the young woman.
Nair had already been pulled from the waters off Yellow Bluff Beach.“We go through that keyhole, and there’s waves crashing through it,” said the swimmer, who asked to remain anonymous.
“And then me and my partner, we start searching for the second victim.”The pair were the latest victims of the horrifying swells that just twenty-four hours earlier claimed the life of a small girl at Laguna Beach, the local sheriff-coroner’s office said.Soon, the swimmer said, he saw Sran floating face down in her bathing suit, about 20 yards offshore.“I’m able to get her up on my chest and keep her airway out of the water, and my partner is able to swim over and clip in with me, and we just swim her in together,” he explained.Both women were alive when they were pulled from the water.Nair died soon after the rescue, while Sran remained at a local hospital in critical condition until Saturday, when she passed away, according to the Santa Cruz Sheriff-Coroner.Authorities have yet to officially determine their cause and manner of death.Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the beach after a witness called 911 just after 5 p.m.Wednesday, officials said.Nair was a legal studies major at UC Berkely set to graduate in 2027.
Sran was set to earn her degree in public health at San José State Univer...