A 7-year-old in Florida swam for an hour to help his dad and sister, who were swept away by a current in a boating accident.
Chase Poust took his heroic swim after his father Steven advised him to. He was trying to help Chase’s 4-year-old sister Abigail, who was wearing a life jacket and was caught in the current on St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida after falling off the back of their anchored boat.
“The current was so strong that my sister—she usually hangs out at the back of the boat and—she let go so I let go of the boat and grabbed her and then I was stuck,” Chase told News 4 Jax.
Chase did what his father asked and swam an hour to shore, where he reached the nearest house to ask for help. He says he floated on his back for part of the way there.
“I told them I loved him because I wasn’t sure what’s going to happen,” Steven said. “I tried to stick with her as long as I could—with both of them. I wore myself out, and she drifted away from me.”
Florida Fish and Wildlife crews arrived in the water after Chase and a neighbor called 911, and the found the man and his daughter quickly. Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department spokesperson Eric Prosswimmer said they “couldn’t ask for a better outcome.”
“We had every resource we could have possibly had coming quickly,” he said, “and we’re happy to say all three have been recovered, and all three are doing well.”
