Michael Louis Lesan

Michael Louis Lesan saved a teenage girl from drowning, Edisto Beach, South Carolina, June 22, 2023. The girl was swimming in the Atlantic Ocean when she was caught in a rip current and carried from shore, unable to return. There were 4-foot-high waves in the water offshore, and 6-foot-high waves breaking on shore. Winds gusted up to 28 m.p.h. Lesan, 41, financial advisor, was on the beach with his family. Lesan entered the ocean and swam about 120 feet to the girl, who was bobbing up and down in the strong waves. Lesan grasped her by the arm and started to swim toward shore as waves crashed over them, pulling and pushing her. The girl submerged Lesan a few times, and Lesan grew tired and had difficulty moving his legs as he swam with her toward shore. Once Lesan and the girl could both stand at a point close to shore, the girl walked out of the water. Lesan walked, then crawled a few feet to exit the water. The girl coughed up water when she got to the beach. Lesan was nearly exhausted; he recovered.