A Georgia father of four is being remembered as a hero after he died while rescuing a young girl from a dangerous rip current at Myrtle Beach.
Derrick Moore, 47, of Loganville, Georgia, was visiting the popular South Carolina beach when tragedy struck on Friday, Aug. 8.
At around 8 p.m., Myrtle Beach police and firefighters responded to reports of a missing swimmer in the ocean near 10th Avenue South.
Authorities later learned that Moore had gone into the water to help a young girl who had been caught in a rip current. He managed to get her to safety, but was then reportedly pulled underwater by the same powerful current.
Moore never resurfaced.
Police, firefighters and the U.S. Coast Guard launched a large search effort that night, using multiple resources, including a helicopter, to try to find him.
The Coast Guard said its Sector Charleston watchstanders were alerted to a 47-year-old man who had disappeared in the water and did not resurface. Crews searched into the early morning hours but were unable to locate him.
The heartbreaking search came to an end the following morning when Myrtle Beach police found Moore’s body near the shoreline around 11th Avenue South.
Family members later identified him as a father of four and a teacher from Georgia.
“We loved him and are truly heartbroken that he’s gone,” Moore’s daughter told WRAL. “He was a great father and we are all going to miss him.”
According to local reports, the drowning happened after lifeguards had already gone off duty.
Moore reportedly did not know the young girl he rushed into the ocean to save. Authorities have not publicly released her identity, condition or current whereabouts.
The story became even more emotional after a man claiming to be the girl’s uncle said Moore had actually saved both him and his niece.
“He saved me and my niece. I am so sorry. My heart goes out to the family. I’m trying to contact the family,” the man reportedly wrote in a comment on a social media post shared by one of Moore’s sons.
Social media users have since been trying to help connect the man with Moore’s grieving family.
The Coast Guard also offered condolences after Moore’s body was recovered.
“The Coast Guard would like to extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends during this time of grief,” the agency said.
What began as an ordinary evening at Myrtle Beach ended with a father of four making the ultimate sacrifice to save a child he reportedly did not even know.
