‘Amazing thing:’ Fast-thinking former police officer saves man from drowning Horry County

HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — Sean Houle and his family were vacationing at Apache Family Campground over the July 4 weekend when their lives changed in an instant.

As their children played in the water, a crowd gathered around an unresponsive man. Houle, a retired North Carolina police officer, ran over to help when he noticed an off-duty nurse giving the person chest compressions.

Houle began CPR, and the person eventually coughed up water and started breathing on his own. Lifeguards helped take the man to a waiting ambulance while Houle was left wondering if his lifesaving efforts paid off.

Houle learned the person was back on the beach the next day — leading to an impromptu reunion.

“You know, my image of this man, prior to that was him blue and lifeless on the beach,” Houle said. “So now, I get to see the total opposite.”

Houle believes the rescue was meant to be — that he was on the beach to assist the man who was caught up in rip currents.

“He ended up all the way down the beach where we were at and washed up to us. A handful of people had the knowledge and the skill to do what needed to be done to save his life,” Houle said.

Houle and the man exchanged numbers and plan to keep in touch — forging a bond that few can understand. That’s because Houle himself had a near death experience.

During an on-duty traffic stop in 2021, Houle was shot in the face.

“This was a survivor story. A miraculous survival story. I should have been dead from shot in the face and hand. He should been dead from drowning,” Houle said. “Instead, he gets to enjoy the rest of his life. And that’s just a truly amazing thing.”

Houle emphasized the importance of being CPR certified, noting it’s an easy certification to obtain and gives people skills they need to one day save a life.

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Skylar Musick is a multimedia journalist at News13. Skylar is originally from Long Island, New York. She joined the News13 team in June 2024 after graduating from Villanova University in May 2024. Follow Skylar on X, formerly Twitter, Facebook , or Instagram , and read more of her work here .

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