Summer was still weeks away when alert union Lifeguards at Rockaway Beach in Queens and Manhattan’s Chelsea Pool rescued two swimmers in distress.

In separate near-drowning incidents, veteran Lifeguards and a Supervisor rescued and revived a teen and a man caught in deep water.

On June 2, Lifeguard José Salas and Supervisor Norberto Ferrer of Local 508 arrived at Rockaway Beach an hour early to do paperwork. They were interrupted by screams for help. “A cleaning lady said a surfer was in trouble,” Ferrer said. Still in civilian clothes, the two stripped and plunged in.

“My partner reached the victim first with a rescue can,” said Ferrer. The man held on to the red buoy, and the Lifeguards pulled him to shore. “The water was cold and his muscles cramped up,” Ferrer said. “If he didn’t have the boogie board, the scuba team would have had to find him.”

Back on the sandy beach, the 38-year old man found himself in deep water again. Police responding to the emergency slapped him with a $50 fine for swimming without a lifeguard on duty. When their routine check revealed an outstanding assault warrant, they arrested him.

On a muggy Friday afternoon, May 21, Local 461 Lifeguards Juan Mercado and José Santana were supervising about 25 Chelsea children at the pool when a distraught teen called for help.

“His buddy couldn’t come up from the bottom of the pool,” said Mr. Mercado. José Santana dove in to save 14-year-old Reggie Walker. Sagging under the weight of the unconscious 180-pounder, Mr. Santana brought the boy to the surface. The youth wasn’t breathing, but he did have a pulse.

The Lifeguards administered rescue breathing and revived the teen by the time EMS arrived. “It was a ‘severe’ rescue where the person was unconscious,” said Mr. Santana. “I had to take control, and fortunately I immediately went into life-saving mode.”

“It’s a good feeling to be able to save someone’s life,” Mr. Santana said. “It was like we were his guardian angels there to rescue him.”