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(NBC 12)- CASA GRANDE, Ariz. – Thirty-five-year-old Casa Grande firefighter Jacob Celaya was driving with his family to Canyon Lake Thursday when their truck blew a tire. After he replaced the tire with a spare, the family considered abandoning their plans and returning home. Fortunately for a stranger who was swimming at the lake that day, Celaya decided to go ahead with the trip.
While Celaya’s family was packing up from kayaking and a picnic on the shore of Canyon Lake, a man was spotted struggling to stay afloat in the water.
“I saw him out in the water, 50 to 60 feet out, and he was yelling at his buddy,” Celaya said.
People on shore told Celaya the man was not a strong swimmer and was in real trouble. Celaya’s instincts kicked in. He dove in the water and swam as fast as he could to the struggling swimmer. When he reached the man, his body was stiff.
“It’s not like the movies,” Celaya said. “When I grabbed him, he wasn’t buoyant at all. He just wanted to sink, like a rock.”
The firefighter found himself in the fight of his life. At one point he actually had to let go of the victim and lost track of him underwater.
“He was unconscious but he grabbed my shorts. He grabbed my swim trunks with a purposeful grip,” Celaya said.
Another boost of adrenaline gave Celaya the strength to pull the man to shore. He administered CPR and within about a minute, the man began breathing on his own.
All along, Celaya’s 13-year-old daughter watched her dad carry out the heroic act.
“And she said,’I wasn’t scared because I knew you were going to save him,'” he said.
