Christopher B. Arias

Christopher B. Arias rescued a man from drowning, Walnut Grove, California, March 11, 2021. The man, 67, remained inside his vehicle after it left a roadway and entered the Sacramento River, coming to rest at a point about 75 feet from the nearer bank. Arias, 35, low voltage technician, was driving nearby and witnessed the accident. Arias ran down the bank and, without stopping to remove his clothing or boots, entered the 55-degree water and swam out to the vehicle, which had fully submerged, the driver sitting on the vehicle’s roof. Arias grasped the man by an arm and told him to float on his back. With a hold on the man under his back, Arias swam toward the bank as a swift current carried them downstream. The man turned onto his stomach, and Arias grasped the man’s shirt. Arias used his other arm and legs to swim toward shore, while the man also moved his arms in the water. Ultimately, they reached a point about 15 feet from the bank, 200 feet downstream from where Arias had reached the man, and Arias aided him onto the rocks. The man was taken by ambulance to the hospital. Arias was fatigued and cut his arm, but did not require medical treatment. He recovered.