By Mike Simmons
Perdido. It means “lost” in Spanish. In Florida, Perdido Key is located at the extreme western end of Florida. Is it a lost key? Not anymore – it is one of the most attractive tourist resorts in the country.
“Somebody’s drowning!” she yelled.
“What?”
“Anthony, somebody is drowning!”
“I suddenly heard the screams, the desperate screams of desperate people. Without saying a word, I handed everything in my hand to my mother, turned and shot off in a dead sprint to the water’s edge, about 300 feet away.”
As Anthony was running, he scanned the gulf, which was full of swimmers. In his words, “something wasn’t right.” Soon he noticed a human hand-to-hand chain forming to get to several people who seemed to be struggling to stay afloat. Four young people had been caught in the rip current and had been overcome.
“As I reached the water, I dove in.” Anthony said. “Then, to reach the victims as soon as possible, I decided to swim under water. That way I wouldn’t have to fight the constant waves coming against me.” The drowning victims weren’t close – they were about fifty yards into the gulf.
The first person he reached looked to be about 12 years old. He was flailing and struggling to get air. Anthony grabbed him and took him to shore, handing him off to one of the many people willing to help. Then he returned and rescued another victim and brought him back to shore.
As soon as all the original victims were safe – but not out of danger – Anthony noticed that one of the members of the human chain had been pulled away from the others and further out into the deep. Exhausted, Anthony dove in again. Understand, he had sprinted one hundred yards through deep sand, swam fifty yards to the first guy, fifty back, fifty to the second guy and fifty back. Even someone in excellent shape would find themselves struggling. But in he went. He later explained:
“I never thought about it. I knew I was tired, but I couldn’t NOT go back in. I didn’t see my actions as heroic – it was just what I had to do. It wasn’t my job as a cop. It needed doing and I couldn’t imagine not going in.”
As he neared the lady in trouble, some other rescuers had reached her with a child’s floating ring – the only thing available. As he reached them, he was exhausted, and so were the other four people who were out there.
Now, get the picture that Anthony saw – four people were clinging to a kiddie float in deep water with no other means of rescue. All of them, including Anthony, were tired. Anthony approached the group and began helping them toward shore, but without success.
“For the first time in my life,” Anthony said to the author, “I felt that I might not make it. With no assistance and out of energy, it looked like we might drown.”
Then a surge came over him. Instead of pushing the group from behind, Anthony grabbed the ring from the front and began pulling it. He also spoke calming words to those who were panicking. “We are going to make it,” he said, even though he wasn’t sure of his own words.
After what seemed like an eternity, the group finally swam close enough that they felt sand beneath their feet. A score of people were waiting desperately to help them to shore. Anthony ran to the boy that was in the worst shape – the first one he had rescued. He was having trouble breathing, so Anthony started first aid.
Within seconds, the fire department and an ambulance arrived and took over treating those involved. They checked on Anthony also. “Are you okay?” they asked him. At first he thought, what a silly question…of course I’m okay! Then he realized that it was God’s grace that he was okay.
On August 4, 2021, Pensacola Police Chief Eric Randall had the honor of awarding Anthony with the 11th Gold Medal of Valor in the history of the Pensacola Police Department.
Thank God for people like Anthony. As one of the survivors’ family members said, “He was there for a reason.”
