Teens saved from tidepool

Three teenagers found out the hard way that Laguna Beach’s tidepools can be treacherous.

The cousins — 15-year-old Ryan Galliano, visiting his aunt and uncle in Laguna for the week; Robin Reed, 13; and Julianne Bell, 15 — were playing on the rocks at Diver’s Cove at low tide on Tuesday and didn’t realize the tide was starting to come in until waves crashed over them.

“We tried to climb up [the rocks] as far as we could to get out of the way,” Julianne said. “Robin and I made it far enough, but Ryan got knocked down by a wave and fell into the blowhole.”

Ryan managed to swim out of the blowhole, where he was being tossed against the rocks, but once he reached the other side he grew tired and could barely swim.

He said he is a good swimmer and was able to swim out of the blowhole and past the waves, but then grew really tired and scared.

“I thought I was going to drown,” Ryan said. Then a man who was walking along the beach with his girlfriend took off his shoes and shirt and went into the ocean to help Ryan.”

The man carried him to safety and then “disappeared,” Ryan said.

Sondra Siani, a former lifeguard, was fetching the mail from her mother’s driveway near the cove at 5:15 p.m. when she heard screams from the beach below.

Siani saw two young girls trapped on the rocks, yelling for help, and another young boy fighting to stay afloat in the choppy tide of the beach cove.

Siani called 911, and threw a ring buoy to the cousins to hang onto until help arrived. Siani is familiar with the dangers at Diver’s Cove.

“It’s a turbulent area with frequent drownings,” Siani said. “In the past, people have died while trying to save other people in the water.”

She was also concerned about the girls’ safety, because the tide was rushing in and water was splashing over the rocks.

“I was scared they were going to make a run for it, and I knew they would get swept in [the ocean] if they did,” she said.

More than 15 minutes passed before a city lifeguard and police officer arrived, Siani said.

The city lifeguard on call bandaged Galliano, who was cut on the rocks, while Siani called the boy’s uncle, David Bell, to notify the guardians of the incident.

“The time it took for [help] to arrive was unacceptable,” Siani claimed. “Three kids would have drowned if it weren’t for two Good Samaritans.”

Siani later learned that the first officer dispatched had been in a car accident on his way to the scene, so a second officer was dispatched, hence the delay.

The lifeguard had been at home when he was notified, which is why it took him so long to respond for duty.

Siani believes the incident shows that the city is skimping on lifeguards.

“This city [allotted] $750,000 for lifeguard towers, but can’t even fill them because of budget cutbacks [on lifeguard salaries],” she said. “It makes no sense.”

Galliano’s uncle, David Bell, said he is frustrated with lack of lifeguard presence on the beach.

“This town should afford at least one lifeguard on duty, not someone on call at their house,” he said. “I don’t understand how we can put millions of dollars into remodeling a park, but the budget is so tight we had to cut down our lifeguard staff.”

Bell and his family would like the man who pulled Galliano from the ocean to come forward.

They did not have a chance to thank him since he disappeared from the scene shortly after the incident.

“He was a real hero,” Bell said. “I’d like to speak with him in person so I can tell him that.”

The Marine Safety Department could not be reached for comment on the incident.