9-year-old boy in critical condition after getting caught in Central Coast waves
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- Rescuers pulled a juvenile from Central Coast sea after big, strong waves.
- Paramedics reestablished pulse in ambulance; patient moved to Bay Area hospital.
- Cal Fire warned along state's coastline, swells make ocean unpredictable and unforgiving.
Rescuers had to pluck another person, this one a child, from Central Coat waters after they were swept off the shore by strong waves near Point Lobos on Sunday.
The juvenile patient was brought to safety by lifeguards from the state parks district in Monterey, supervising ranger Mike Dippel told The Tribune on Tuesday.
The rescuers deemed the boy, estimated to be about 9 years old, to be in critical condition but still alive, he said.
Once on shore, they immediately “started emergency medical care” to sustain life until the ambulance could arrive to take the boy to the hospital, Dippel said.
In the ambulance, paramedics were able to reestablish the patient’s pulse, according to a Cal Fire post on social media. The child was later transferred to a Bay Area hospital “for a higher level of care,” the post said.
Dippel said he believes the child’s family was with him when he was swept away by the strong surf. He and Cal Fire officials hoped to be updated about the child’s condition later Tuesday.
“This incident serves as an important reminder: while our coastline is beautiful, the ocean can be unpredictable and unforgiving — especially during periods of large swell,” the Cal Fire post said.
In recent related incidents, a fisherman was rescued near Granite Cove on Thursday, and was expected to recover.
There were two other ocean-going incidents near Santa Cruz that weekend as well.
In Santa Cruz, the search for two missing surfers was suspended Saturday after a more than 10 -hour search along more than 90 miles of shore, according to U.S. Coast Guard News. Witnesses had reported them as being in distress Friday near the Santa Cruz Lighthouse.
Also, six people were tossed into the sea when the boat they were in capsized Sunday off West Cliff Drive.
As of Tuesday, the status of the missing surfers still was unknown. The six people on the capsized boat were rescued and deemed safe.
Those incidents continued a dangerous trend seen in late 2025, with four swept-to-sea fatalities within a few weeks in the area.
In those incidents, a 7-year-old boy and his father died south of Pescadero, a 35-year-old serviceman was washed away, a 72-year-old man was pulled off the rocks near Pebble Beach and a 32-year-old fisherman died, again near Pebble Beach.
