On the weekend of Memorial Day, Chase Poust and his younger sister Abigail, who was only 4 years old at the time, were swimming in the St. John’s River beside their father’s boat when a terrible accident occurred.

While their dad was out fishing, the two children were having a great time playing in the water when all of a sudden Abigail lost her grip on the boat as a strong current began to move through the area.

The children’s father, Steven Poust, entered the water and began swimming toward the coast while attempting to collect Abigail, who was being carried along by the current while wearing a life jacket. He urged Chase to swim to the land while he was attempting to retrieve Abigail.

“Because I didn’t know what was going to happen, I made sure to tell them both that I loved them.”  Steven said that throughout the scary time, he did his best to remain at her side for as long as possible.

Chase said that he “was pretty afraid” throughout the incident. Unbelievably, despite the chaos around him, the small youngster managed to keep his composure and perform.

The child swam back to shore and alternated between doggy paddling and floating on his back in order to maintain his stamina and prevent himself from being too exhausted. To make matters worse, the direction of the stream was counter to that of the boat and the beach, which made it more difficult for him to swim.

As soon as he set foot on solid ground, the bright kid immediately raced to the closest house he could locate and knocked on the door of the owners. After he informed them about the circumstance, the locals dialed 911 to request assistance.

After an hour of searching, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office were able to locate Steven and Abigail more than a mile away from the boat.

“I yelled for assistance at the top of my lungs and waved my arms, and sure enough someone heard us,” Steven added.

The youngsters were taken to a hospital in the area so that doctors there could examine them for any injuries. At this point, each of the three of them is doing rather well.

The noble act that his kid performed has filled Steven to bursting with pride. They are all alive and unharmed as a direct result of his bravery and clearheadedness in the situation.