Coast Guard rescue swimmer hailed as American hero after saving 165 during Texas flood on first mission

A Coast Guard rescue swimmer answered the call of duty during his first mission: saving people from the flash floods that took place on Independence Day last week in Texas. He spoke to Good Morning America on Monday morning about that effort, for which he was praised by the Department of Homeland Security. He was on the ground at Camp Mystic getting girls to safety.

“This is what it’s all about, right? Like, this is why we do the job,” Scott Ruskan, 26, told the New York Post. Ruskan is a former accountant for KPMG and a native of New Jersey and was able to help save 165 people from the area of Camp Mystic.

Ruskan, a Petty Officer in the Coast Guard, added, “This is why we take those risks all time. This is why like Coast Guard men and women, are risking their lives every day." The hero who helped save 165 people in the flood was charged with triage at Camp Mystic, the all-girls Christian summer camp which was hit hard by the flooding. The flood has claimed over 80 lives in the region where the floods struck, including dozens of children.

The Coast Guard rescue swimmer was part of a crew that that took off at 7 am after he was awakened early in the morning to be deployed. “I had a job to do,” Ruskan recounted in an interview with the New York Times. “All these people are looking at you terrified with a 1,000-yard stare. They want some sort of comfort, someone to save them.”

He has been celebrated for the rescues and called an "American hero" for his actions. "As catastrophic floods swept through Central Texas, Rescue Swimmer Scott Ruskan and his Coast Guard aircrew answered the call of duty without hesitation—saving 165 lives during his first rescue mission. The extraordinary bravery and selfless service of Ruskan and his fellow first responders embody the very spirit of the United States Coast Guard and the best of what it means to be an American," the Department of Homeland Security said in a post to X. 

Ruskan and his crew landed at Camp Mystic, and around 200 people needed to be evacuated. With only two main landing zones, Ruskan realized that he would be of greater help on the ground than staying on scene with the aircraft and it would mean two more free spots on the helicopter for those needing saving.

“I’d love to stay, I could do a lot more good on the ground," he told his fellow officers. He then became the main individual to triage for the campers as well as providing them emotional support. He would go out around the camp, shuttling campers to the helicopters, sometimes with two young girls in one arm, and reassuring others that he would come back for them.

At times, the young girls asked if they could bring their stuffed animals, to which he replied, "Of course."