St. Paul Fire Captain Saves Man From Drowning In Florida

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A St. Paul fire captain was in the right place at the right time to save a man from drowning.

Jamie Smith was kayaking with his girlfriend near Fort Lauderdale, Florida, last week when they decided to stop at a sandbar.

That's when Smith noticed a man who'd been swept away by the tide and was struggling to swim.

"I grabbed the life jacket off the kayak...and I proceeded to swim out," Smith said. "He was probably a good 20-30 yards away."

Smith added that everytime the man went underwater, he was swept further out.

Still, Smith rescued the man. Ironically, he and his girlfriend were not supposed to be in Florida at the time.

Their flight was delayed, but they rescheduled to stick around a few more days.