José Sirven

José Sirven rescued Carolina Olazabal from drowning, Cutler Bay, Florida, April 11, 2021. During a storm, Olazabal, 38, jumped off a sinking boat with her infant daughter in her arms, neither wearing life jackets. She and her daughter were among eight people in the water who had jumped from the boat, which was about 5 miles from shore, although all of the others wore life jackets. Nearby, Sirven, 25, software engineer, was operating his own boat, carrying four children, his wife and an adult friend, when he saw a flare from the distressed boat. Spotting the sinking boat in the high waves, rain and heavy wind, he and the friend weighed whether to seek safety for their own passengers before deciding to help, and Sirven maneuvered his boat near the sinking vessel. After picking up several passengers, he saw Olazabal and her infant in the water. Telling his friend to pilot the boat, he dived into the stormy waters without a life jacket and swam 20 feet to Olazabal, who had submerged. Sirven also submerged to grab her and held her above the surface while calling to his friend over the wind noise to drive the boat toward them. On his third attempt, the friend was able to bring the boat close enough for Sirven to swim with an exhausted Olazabal toward the back of the boat, where he helped push her aboard. The baby was also pulled aboard to safety. Sirven then piloted his boat, now overloaded with 15 people, through the storm 5 miles to a marina. An ambulance took Olazabal and the baby to a hospital, where they were treated for swallowing water, hypothermia and lack of oxygen. Both recovered. Sirven was not injured.