Lifeguard fired for saving drowning man. LOL it doesnt get better then this.

If this were an ideal world the public backlash over this idiocy would cause the firer to become the firee, and that Lopez guy to get reinstated. With a raise.

But sadly, I doubt that will be the case.

He should just opened his own business and bid for the contract. With this story he might just get it ;)

What would happen if he had let the guy die and then said he could do nothing because his boss would have been pissed? - They would have sacked him.

I hope he fucks them over big time - He has already made a good start....

What would have happened if someone drowned in the area he was paid to watch?

http://gfy.com/showpost.php?p=19045166&postcount=27

He was not the only one there -

two people could have drowned at the same time, they had him there for a reason, so he could protect that area. If one person was enough to patrol the area he would have not been scheduled that day. Not to mention what if there was a reason he wasn't supposed to go over to the other area and the lifeguard drowned too?

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations where no matter what choice we take, both bad and good could come.

Save a life and lose a job.

Save a job and lose a life.

Pretty easy answer for me. It's an eight dollar an hour job for Christ sakes. Who cares? He can get another one.

Do you really think he should have just let him (as far as he knew) die?

I don't think there is anything you could tell me that would convince me.

I realize that this may be a difficult concept to grasp, but if they were staffed with more than one lifeguard there MUST be a reason. Most companies don't have more people on duty than they need.

Oh please.

Job or not. On duty or not.

Someone comes up to you screaming and says "hey, someone is drowning over there!" Do you sit back, scratch your nuts, and consider what the rule book states in these situations?

You are either a decent human being and you take off running. Or you are a total putz and you sit around like a jerk off, in which case, you should never be a lifeguard anyway.

There are rules. And there are human responses.

Wow. Really? I'll just watch that guy over there drown because I'm paid to sit here and stare at this little block of sand. Nobody drowned in his assigned area, and he managed to save somebody's life.

Baddog, you should take up swimming. In the ocean. Far from shore.

Better he stay at his post and wait for a hypothetical person to drown than to actually go out of his way and save the life of a real human being in danger.

You are a piece of shit.

Could you let someone die if you thought you could save them?

It would be interesting to see a Euro V US Poll - I am sure it must be something we have learned....

This is when common sense comes in. No, you do not let a drowning man die. Fuck the job, he's a hero and will get another.

have you ever had a poo in the ocean waters ?

But even that does not hold much water. Think about it. The more life guards they can convince the city to have the more the company makes.

Most likely the un protected area was private or similar.

You better hope you don't drown somewhere and the lifeguard is sticking to the rules.

Sorry Baddog, can't save you. Company policy. Sorry!

<insert cocky Baddog-reply>

You should only fire someone if their behavior could be repetitive.

If this is something that happens often because of dumbasses then the company could have a point.

His job has been offered back by the owner who was traveling when it happened. Overzealous managers.

Ahhh.... The 'rouge employee' defence....

Smart - Adult leads the way....

The manager should be suspended for being a giant fuckbag.

Guess there will be an new Manager (Hero) in town

Recruit the other 6 that resigned... Yeah, I can see that happening...

If there are zones that are unprotected then there is a market

Florida lifeguard says he's been offered his job back

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - The south Florida lifeguard fired for disregarding a protected area so he could save a swimmer outside that zone said Thursday he has been offered his job back.

But Tomas Lopez told CNN he does not plan to return to work.

The 21-year-old said his phone has been ringing off the hook with journalists trying to get his side of the story. He is set to make an appearance on CNN's "Erin Burnett OutFront" Thursday night.

"The reason I was fired is just ridiculous," Lopez told CNN late Wednesday. "It is a ridiculous rule, really. What was I supposed to do? Just let the guy drown?"

Jeff Ellis Management, the company for which Lopez worked, said lifeguards cannot go beyond the perimeter of the beach they are responsible for overseeing.

The company could not be immediately reached Thursday to confirm Lopez' statement that he and other lifeguards who quit in protest of his termination have been offered their jobs back.

The incident occurred Monday at Hallandale Beach in southern Florida.

A beachgoer rushed to Lopez's lifeguard station to alert him to a man who was drowning.

The man was some 1,500 feet outside the company's protection zone in an area where signs warn visitors to swim at their own risk, a supervisor with the company told CNN affiliate WPTV.

Even though he knew it was outside the company protection zone, Lopez ran into the ocean toward the struggling man and pulled him ashore. The man, he said, had turned blue.

"He was having a lot of trouble breathing," Lopez said.

A nurse at the beach tended to the victim until emergency medics arrived and rushed him off to a hospital.

It all happened so quickly that Lopez said he never got the man's name and wonders if he is all right.

"It is killing me. I really want to know what happened to the guy," he said.

The man was in good condition Thursday, acccording to Aventura Hospital.

After the near-drowning, Lopez said he was asked by his supervisor to complete an incident report.

"At that point I knew I was going to be fired. I knew I had broken the rule," Lopez said. "In those cases, we are supposed to call 911 and hope they get there in time."

Company supervisor Susan Ellis told WPTV that Lopez was let go for violating company policy.

"We have liability issues and can't go out of the protected area," she said. "What he did was his own decision. He knew the company rules and did what he thought he needed to do."

On Wednesday, company owner Jeff Ellis told the Sun Sentinel newspaper the firm will interview managers and workers to see if safety protocols were violated.

"If we find our actions on the part of the leadership team were inappropriate, we will rectify it based upon the information that comes forward," he told the paper.

Lopez said he started the $8.25-an-hour job four months ago and had hoped to continue working there when he goes to Broward College in the fall.

"I have no doubts I did the right thing," he said Thursday. "I believe I did what was right, and that if someone needs help you're going to go help them, regardless if you're a lifeguard or not."

CNN's John Zarrella contributed to this report. Read more about this story from CNN affiliate WPTV.

http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/news/nationa...n-beach-rescue

nice..i imagine he is going to get some major pussy over at broward college now..lol

yeah im that lifeguard...its not a big deal...swimming lessons? sure i could give you some...now? sure..lets go.

He did the right thing, and baddog is an asshole.

Said perfect.