“I Tried to Think Quickly, and That’s When I Knew I Was Going to Have to Jump in The Water”
Satie Engelhardt has been a lifeguard at the Hastings YMCA since September 2018. Every lifeguard at the YMCA is required to go through Lifeguard Certification classes which include CPR and First Aid training, along with how to respond in case of an emergency. You don’t always show up to work expecting to have to jump in the pool to save someone, but you always make sure you’re prepared for it.
On May 15th Satie was working her shift at the YMCA’s 16th St. swimming pool. She had her emergency pack on, floatation device at her side, and whistle around her neck. As a group of kids was swimming and having fun, Satie noticed a boy who begun to look concerned about being in the deep water.
We spoke with Satie about the situation and got to hear her story of what happened.
“There was a birthday party with a group of 12 kids swimming. They seemed like they were 12-13 years old. One of the boys went off the diving board while the other kids were saying it was his first time going off the board AFTER he had already gone off of it. By then he was in the middle of the 12ft deep water and looked like he started to panic because he couldn’t get to the wall.
After he jumped off, I could hear him in the water saying “I can’t do this, I can’t do this” and he looked very panicked with wide eyes.
He was above water which means he was an “active victim” and he was starting to bob his head under the water. That’s when I could tell he needed help. I tried to think quickly and knew I was going to have to jump in the water.
I was calm and knew I wouldn’t need help on this one. I blew my whistle which activates our EAP (Emergency Action Plan) and Becky (The YMCA’s Aquatics Director) heard me from her office. I knew what I was supposed to do, which is blow my whistle however many times our emergency plan says, jump in, go behind them and move my arms under their arms which rests their back on our floatation device. I swam him to the latter and he was not calm during this time. He eventually settled down once he realized that he was ok, but I’m sure he felt like he was drowning.”
We are so thankful that Satie was alert and ready to go during this time! With her training, she stayed calm and knew exactly what she was supposed to. It’s guards like Satie that help our members feel at ease when they are swimming in the water or sending their kids to the pool!
Did You Know?
You don’t have to be a lifeguard to be trained for emergencies in your everyday life? Earn your CPR & First Aid Certification at the YMCA and be ready for every situation!
Hope LeBar, Marketing Director
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