{"id":50470,"date":"2026-01-28T13:51:17","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T13:51:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/50470\/"},"modified":"2026-01-28T13:51:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T13:51:17","slug":"i-dont-see-myself-as-a-hero-teen-saves-police-officers-life-pics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/50470\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I don\u2019t see myself as a hero\u2019: Teen saves police officer\u2019s life [PICS]"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\tJames and his family were holidaying in the Eastern Cape when a morning walk along the beach turned into an emergency.\n\t<\/p>\n

A 17-year-old Dainfern College pupil says he \u201csnapped into hyper focus\u201d when he realised a man pulled from the sea at Kei Mouth had no pulse and was not breathing, triggering a dramatic rescue that ultimately saved a police officer\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

Speaking to The Citizen, James Smith said he knew immediately the situation was critical when the swimmer was brought ashore on 16 December during the school holidays.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I felt for a pulse and checked his chest, I realised he wasn\u2019t breathing, and there was no pulse,\u201d James said. \u201cIn that moment, everything changes. You\u2019re no longer trying to keep someone alive, you\u2019re trying to bring them back to life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u2018I don\u2019t see myself as a hero\u2019<\/p>\n

James and his family were holidaying in the Eastern Cape when a morning walk along the beach turned into an emergency.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw one person who was much further out than everyone else. People normally stay close to the shoreline there. I then noticed the lifeguards standing up and looking towards the water, and we realised something was wrong,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The swimmer, Singita (surname unknown), a 31-year-old police officer, was later pulled from the sea after being submerged for about eight minutes. He showed no signs of breathing or circulation.<\/p>\n

As lifeguards struggled against a strong current, two local teenage boys swam out to help retrieve the man.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe lifeguards were taking two steps forward and one step back. Two local boys went in with their own rescue equipment, and without them, I don\u2019t think we would have gotten him out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t see myself as a hero. Everyone there played a role, especially the Baisly boys that helped to retrieve him from the water. That\u2019s what saved his life,\u201d James added.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ:\u00a0Unsung heroes: The volunteers saving lives in Pretoria<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2018Doubt that the patient was going to recover\u2019<\/p>\n

Once on the beach, James, who holds a Level 3 First Aid certificate and a Basic Life Support qualification, took control of the emergency response.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a moment of hesitation where I realised how serious it was,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen I just snapped into a space where I was hyper-focused. I went straight into training mode.\u201d<\/p>\n

James immediately instructed bystanders to call an ambulance and fetch an automated external defibrillator (AED) while he began CPR.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first thing that went through my mind was that we needed an ambulance as quickly as possible. Then it was CPR and getting an AED down to the beach.\u201d<\/p>\n

He performed CPR for 15 minutes before rotating with others. Under his guidance, lifeguards used an aspirator to clear water from the man\u2019s airway, and James later inserted an oropharyngeal airway device to improve airflow. CPR continued in rotation for nearly two hours.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the first half hour, there was no pulse at all,\u201d he said. \u201cHe was blue and swollen, and water was coming out of his mouth. It didn\u2019t look promising, but we just kept going.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the fourth or fifth round of CPR, when I was checking for a pulse, I was thinking that going this long with no pulse, I highly doubt that the patient was going to recover,\u201d James added.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ:\u00a0Wanna help? Here\u2019s how to donate to Limpopo and Mpumalanga flood victims<\/a><\/p>\n

Recognition for bravery<\/p>\n

When paramedics arrived from East London almost two hours later, James briefed them and continued assisting as they stabilised Singita and transferred him to hospital.<\/p>\n

A week later, Singita was discharged with no neurological damage. He later met James to thank him in person.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"James Smith with Singita, the police officer he saved. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just glad he got to see his family for Christmas,\u201d James said.<\/p>\n

James was later invited to assist lifeguards with first aid training and emergency equipment reviews.<\/p>\n

He was honoured by the Kei Mouth Police Station and awarded the Freedom of the Town by Ward 5 councillor Zuko Patuluko, becoming the first recipient in the region.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"17-year-old James Smith was recognised by the Kei Mouth Police Station. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t see myself as a hero. Everyone there played a role, from the people calling the ambulance to those bringing blankets. That\u2019s what saved his life.\u201d<\/p>\n

NOW READ:\u00a0Eastern Cape Saps issues urgent call for dog donations for K9 units<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"James and his family were holidaying in the Eastern Cape when a morning walk along the beach turned…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50471,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[52],"tags":[1693,29784,6304,131,3092],"class_list":["post-50470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-south-africa","tag-eastern-cape","tag-hero","tag-police-officer","tag-south-africa","tag-teens"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50470\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}