Rescue crews called to Panther Beach. The status of the victims is unknown. Photo: Santa Cruz Fire Department//Facebook
Santa Cruz lifeguards were busy running around town yesterday to pull people out of the water as the largest south swell in years battered the coast. According to various reports, at least four incidents required emergency responses from lifeguards.
In the afternoon of June 10, lifeguards were called for two people in distress at Panther Beach, several miles north of Santa Cruz. The rescue required eight water personnel, extracting one from the beach with a helicopter and the other on a stretcher. According to Santa Cruz County Volunteer Fire Captain Kyle Breton, both were transported to local hospitals.
The Santa Cruz County Fire Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for updates on the status of the victims.
Breton said the two beachgoers had been sleeping under an arch at Panther Beach used to access another beach. However, at high tide, access through the arch can become dangerous.
“The tides come in, and in this case, they swept out two sleeping patients,” Breton said. “But what we’re also seeing is that people go through the keyhole…and then they get trapped.”
According to KSBW8, three more people were swept out by rip currents at Corcoran Beach on the east side of town. Two bodyboarders were pulled out to sea, but were able to rescue themselves. Shortly after, a woman got caught in the same rip and required rescue by lifeguards.
The Facebook page Native Santa Cruz reported that other rescues were conducted on East Cliff Drive and Natural Bridges Beach. The latter incident occurred around the same time as the Panther Beach rescue, so rescue crews from other districts had to be dispatched.
The south swell that filled in on Tuesday, June 9, was possibly the biggest the state had seen since 2020. As summertime surf spots turned on, lifeguards conducted rescues up and down the state. Sadly, a young girl was swept away in Laguna Beach, and the search has been called off.
As the brunt of the swell has already passed, conditions will continue to remain dangerous for inexperienced beachgoers. A new Southern Hemisphere swell is set to arrive on Tuesday, recreating the treacherous conditions that triggered so many rescues this week.
