A pair of standup paddle surfers are being hailed as heroes after saving a man off the coast La Jolla, according to a published report.
Todd Wirths and his friend Matthew Porreca were paddling near La Jolla Shores on Sunday afternoon when somebody called for their help, reported the La Jolla Light.
"I heard someone say, 'Hey, a little help here' and so we paddled towards two people out snorkeling," Wirths told the paper. "A man was snorkeling with his wife -- he said he had trouble with his gear and had lost his contact lenses."
The situation, however, was much more dire than that: El Monte resident Chris Hutcherson was in the midst of an allergic attack, and Wirths pulled him aboard his large board, according to the paper. The La Jolla resident, whose wife owns Surf Diva, couldn't paddle both of them in, though, so Hutcherson clung to Porreca's board and Wirths raced in to shore
"I was totally disoriented and could not see which direction the shore was," Hutcherson later told the paper. "I kept swallowing water and was also vomiting due to what was later diagnosed as an allergic reaction to penicillin."
After reaching shore, Wirths sent out lifeguards, who brought Hutcherson in.
On Monday, Hutcherson called Wirths to thank him again, the paper reported. While he was on the phone, Hutcherson said he had just gotten out of the hospital; he also said doctors told him he had a mild seizure that was brought on by the severe allergy attack.
