What started as a sunny, fun-filled getaway in the Black Hills turned into a life-saving moment for Wessington Springs High School alumni Brock Krueger.
Krueger, a fourthyear lifeguard and swim instructor at the Wessington Springs municipal pool, was on a weekend family vacation near Sheridan Lake when instinct and training kicked in.
It was the third summer in a row that Krueger and his parents, Mike and Becky, had spent a few days together touring the Black Hills. His older brother Rydell, a student at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, had met up with the family earlier in the trip. On Sunday morning, Brock and his dad headed to a popular cliff-jumping spot at Sheridan Lake.
“It was hot and the water felt great,” Krueger said. “We’d jumped a few times already when a pontoon boat pulled up with 10 to 15 college-aged kids.”
As Krueger and his dad floated nearby after a jump, they watched the entire group leap from the cliffs all at once. Most began swimming back to their boat. But Krueger quickly noticed one swimmer wasn’t keeping up.
“I was watching at first to make sure they weren’t going to land on one another,” said Krueger, who is heading into his sophomore year at Dakota State University, studying math education. “Then I saw the one guy was really struggling. That’s when the lifeguard in me kicked in.”
Krueger’s training made him keen to the critical level of distress the swimmer was experiencing.
“Usually when someone’s distressed, they look like they’re trying to swim. But when they’re drowning, they keep bobbing,” Krueger explained. “This guy was barely able to keep his head above water. I knew I had to get there.”
His dad Mike urged him forward: “You need to get over there.”
Brock glided through the water toward the struggling swimmer, who outweighed him by nearly 100 pounds. Just as the swimmer slipped beneath the surface, Krueger reached him within two strokes.
“I got him under the armpits instead of the arms so he could try to help move toward shore,” Krueger said. “He was still responsive, but it was clear he was in trouble. In lifeguard training, we learn to recognize active drowning victims — and he was definitely one.”
Krueger had been worried about the jump itself.
“He didn’t push off far enough from the cliff. He was only about 10 or 15 feet from the rocks, and I was concerned he was going to hit something,” Krueger said.
He guided the swimmer to a rock ledge, where they clung until Mike arrived to help with the final push to shore. Together, they “skirted the edge” of the rock and walked him toward safety.
As the group made their way back, the man’s friends met them halfway. “He said thank you right away,” Krueger recalled, “but mostly he was trying to catch his breath and get his bearings.”
Back home, Krueger has returned to his summer routine teaching swim lessons and standing watch at the Wessington Springs pool. But the weekend at Sheridan Lake left a lasting impression.
“It’s one of those things where you never know when you’re going to use the training,” he said. “I’m just glad I was there and able to help.”