A teenage surfer became a hero when he rescued a drowning Air Force veteran who was paralyzed underwater after a surfing accident.
Scott Muir loves surfing and has been doing it most of his life. The 12-year Air Force veteran and father of two went out for his usual Sunday morning surf on September 28 in Oceanside, California. He had no idea his life was about to change forever.
That morning, Muir was having fun with two teenage surfers in the water. They were joking around and trying to catch the best waves.
“There was this pair of teenagers. We were kind of playing cat and mouse, trying to outdo each other to get the better waves,” he said.
Then Muir caught a wave. It looked perfect. “It was probably one of the best waves I’d had that day,” Muir said. But the wave flipped him over and drove him headfirst into the ocean floor. The impact paralyzed him. He was stuck underwater face down.
Nineteen-year-old Judah Ely was waiting to see Muir come up. “I was looking for him to pop up so I could congratulate him,” Ely said. But Muir never surfaced.
“Every second that went by I got more and more worried. I jumped off my board and swam as fast as I could. Those 10 seconds were the scariest of my life.”
Ely reached Muir and pulled him up. His friend Thomas Alspaugh, a junior lifeguard, helped bring Muir to shore. They got other surfers and lifeguards to help.
Alspaugh knows they were meant to be there. “I’m glad we were in the right place at the right time,” he said. “God put us there.”
When Muir woke up, he asked who saved him. “I just see Judah’s face pop over and I said, ‘Dude, you saved my life,'” Muir recalled.
Muir believes the friendly time he shared with them made the difference. “That goodwill in the water, that’s what kept them looking out for me,” he said.
Muir has regained movement in his arms and one leg. He will spend months in rehab but he is determined to walk and surf again.
The kindness Muir showed those teens that morning saved his life. They were watching for him because he had been friendly. We never know when a smile or kind word will matter. There is no doubt that God placed those teenagers there to save Muir’s life.
WATCH: Teen Surfers Rescue Veteran Trapped Underwater
