Man rescues 2 kids in dangerous surf at Stinson Beach

STINSON BEACH, Calif. (KGO) -- Rough waves triggered a record number of rescues at Stinson Beach in Marin County over the weekend. One rescuer was just enjoying his day at the beach, now he's being called a hero.

There were 17 rescues at the beach -- 10 on Sunday, including a 13-year-old boy and his eight-year-old sister who got caught in a rip current.

Palmer is a water polo coach at Tamalpais High School and expert swimmer. He saw the kids struggling in the water at 3 p.m. Sunday and jumped in.

"That young man who was helping keep his sister a float had exhausted all of his energy. He could not walk, he could not stand, he could not talk. He was in bad shape," said Palmer.

Back on shore emergency crews took over. The two kids from Pittsburg survived. But plenty of other folks on an evening beach stroll were clearly unaware of the danger, some wandering in knee deep -- deep enough to lose balance.

The message is go with the flow and never fight against a rip current. Swim parallel to the shore to get out of it. It's something surfers know.