On September 19, a Flagler Beach police officer, Dylan Coffman, happened to be in the right place at the right time to save two swimmers in trouble.
As he was driving along State Road A1A near Tortugas Florida Kitchen & Bar at around 5:43 p.m., he heard a dispatch call about swimmers in distress nearby.
FBPD Chief Matthew Doughney provided this information.
Coffman quickly stopped, put on his duty belt, grabbed his department-issued “rescue can,” and sprang into action.
Tortugas employee Brooke Qualls captured a photo of Coffman vaulting over the boardwalk railing as he rushed to assist the two swimmers trapped in a rip current, as mentioned in an FBPD Facebook post.
Although Coffman was the first to arrive, the city’s Ocean Rescue Lifeguards and Flagler Beach Fire Department driver and engineer, Trey Poeira, also played a crucial role in the rescue.
“Officer Dylan Coffman’s outstanding efforts during an ocean rescue earlier this week has brought national attention to our city and its first responders,” an FBPD Facebook post stated. “We’re very proud of Dylan, as well as all of our police officers, city firefighters and city Ocean Rescue lifeguards, all of whom do an outstanding job keeping our city safe.”
