Ex-baseball player, Chase Childers, perishes while attempting a rescue of swimmers near South Carolina coastline.
In a heartbreaking incident that occurred on July 13, 2025, Chase Childers, a former professional baseball player and police officer, lost his life while attempting to rescue swimmers caught in a rip current off the coast of South Carolina. The incident happened around 4:45 p.m. near Pawleys Island, a coastal town approximately 45 minutes south of Myrtle Beach by car.
According to the Pawleys Island Police Department, Childers was the only swimmer missing when authorities arrived at the scene. He entered the water to assist a group of four or five swimmers who were struggling in the powerful rip current. Despite his heroic efforts, Childers became caught in the current and did not return to shore. His body was recovered around 6:15 p.m. after a search involving local police, fire officials, and the U.S. Coast Guard.
Chase Childers, who was drafted by the Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles in 2009, is remembered as a hero who gave his life trying to save others. After his baseball career, he served for several years as a police officer in Cobb County, Georgia.
Rip currents, powerful channels of water that flow rapidly, are the deadliest and most common hazard swimmers face in waters off North and South Carolina, according to the National Weather Service. They can move at speeds up to 8 feet per second and are common along all U.S. coastlines. To identify rip currents, one should look for channels of churning, choppy water, differences in water color, fewer breaking waves in the rip current area compared to surrounding surf, or a narrow gap or channel in the breaking waves with foam or debris moving rapidly away from the shore.
In response to this tragedy, Pawleys Island Mayor Brian Henry expressed his condolences and urged caution when entering the water. The town plans to evaluate ways to reduce the risks of future drownings, including educating tourists about rip currents. Emily Mae Czachor, a reporter and news editor at ourNews.com, is covering the incident and the town's response. Czachor previously wrote for outlets like the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed, and Newsweek.
In light of this incident, it is crucial for beachgoers to be aware of the dangers of rip currents and to follow safety guidelines. Swimming only in designated areas supervised by lifeguards, paying attention to warning signs and flags on the beach, and avoiding swimming near piers, jetties, or breakwaters where rip currents are more common can help prevent such tragedies. If caught in a rip current, one should not swim directly back to shore against the current but should swim parallel to the shoreline until out of the current, then swim back to shore at an angle. If unable to escape by swimming, floating or treading water calmly and signalling for help is the best course of action.
[1] National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, "Rip Currents," accessed July 14, 2025, https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource/rip-currents [2] National Weather Service, "Rip Currents," accessed July 14, 2025, https://www.weather.gov/safety/rip-current [3] GoFundMe campaign created to support Childers' family, accessed July 14, 2025, https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-chase-childers-family
- Despite the heartbreaking incident involving Chase Childers, a former professional baseball player and police officer, news outlets like ourNews.com, once led by Emily Mae Czachor, have been reporting on ways to stay safe at the beach, such as understanding the signs of rip currents and swimming only in designated areas.
- In addition to the breaking news story about Chase Childers, other emerging news items include weather updates from the National Weather Service about the dangers of rip currents, as well as sports news highlighting his impressive baseball career and the ongoing sports community's tribute to his heroic legacy.
