California teen lifeguard's viral rescue captures nationwide awe. He was just doing 'his duty'

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Set us as preferred The dramatic footage of a teenage lifeguard saving a child from punishing waves along the California coast has captured the attention of the nation, drawing praise from the shores of Santa Cruz all the way to the White House.Video of the rescue at Seabright State Beach on Saturday, captured and shared by local photographer Scott Vander Dussen, has gone viral on virtually every social media platform.

The footage shows the rookie lifeguard, just 16 years old, holding onto a limp child as massive swells repeatedly pound the duo.They eventually made it to shore with the help of a second lifeguard.

No one suffered any serious injuries, officials said.President Trump re-shared the video in a post on X — calling the teen a “heroic young man” who he hopes will come to the White House to be properly honored for his valor.

“Very brave, he deserves it!” the president said.California Repeated heat waves across California have made for a busy summer for lifeguards.But the family of the lifeguard, who identified him to The Guardian as Ryder Williams, said the teen feels he was simply doing his job.

“He told me he doesn’t know why everyone was blowing this out of proportion,” Shane Williams, Ryder’s father, told the outlet.His comments to me are like … ‘Any other lifeguard on duty would do the same thing I did.’”“He sees [the rescue] as his job — his duty,” Shane Williams said.

“He did his job that day.”Still, the father said he was moved watching the video of his son.This summer was Ryder’s first as a California State Parks lifeguard, and the rescue that has gone viral was also his first.

“He was such a stud out there,” Williams told The Guardian.“I’m super, super proud of him.” Williams said his son actually made a second rescue later that day, but it wasn’t caugh...