Michael Robidoux; saving the world
Mick sends us the sad story of Michael Robidoux, former Air Force pilot and a current Delta Airlines pilot who tried to rescue two young swimmers, but he got caught in an undertow and lost his own like. Robidoux earned the Distinguished Flying Cross during his military service.
Robidoux’s daughter, Kaela, agreed that her dad was a hero for trying to save others.
“He was my best friend,” she told Fox News, declining to comment further.
Navarre Fire Chief Danny Fureigh told WEAR that Robidoux got “caught in an undertow” as he attempted to reach the children who were flailing their arms for help. The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office said the incident happened just after 6 p.m.
A Santa Rosa County spokesperson told the local news station there are currently nine lifeguards on staff, but they’re looking to hire more.
Category: We Remember
A sad day.
You gave your all Sir. Rest in peace Mr. Robidoux. God be with your family.
God bless you good sir! You are truly a hero! Did the children he was trying to save survive?
From the link above: “Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s officials said two surfers rescued children, who have not yet been identified, as a team from the sheriff’s office searched for Robidoux. They pulled him to shore and deputies performed CPR. Robidoux was critically injured and airlifted to a local hospital, where he later died.”
God bless you and your family, Michael Robidoux. Your life outshines all of the Florida phonies combined.
Rest in Peace, Sir.
Rest in Peace, Mr. Robidoux. See you next time around.
Heroes are easy to spot…they run TOWARDS the danger. God bless you, sir.
Rest easy, sir.
Never, never, ever go into the serf, without a flotation device, to rescue anyone caught in a rip. One time down on the Oregon coast three rescuers were lost trying to save two kids on an air mattress. The kids were being pulled out and three civilians were drowned, one after the other in futile rescue attempts. A Coast Guard MLB was dispatched from the local station and arrived to find that the kids had come ashore down the beach, unharmed. The erstwhile rescurers were not so lucky.
The lesson here is that unless you are Michel Phipps, or Jack La Lane don’t try to fight a rip tide without at least a PFD. I know that the urge to help is strong, sometimes unbearably so, but think first. Kids on a mattress are safer than an unequipped swimmer in a riptide. Take it from an old Lifeboat sailor.
The old helo rescue swimmer agrees with the old Lifeboat sailor. What Mr. Robidoux did was commendable, but in the end useless. Take 30 seconds to look around for flotation, grab it then go if you must. Know how to deal with a rip tide by swimming parallel to the beach to escape the current, it’s usually only 100 feet or less, wide.
Sad. Fair winds and following seas, Mr. Robidoux.
Yeah, he was out of his element but he tried, seeing the kids in danger and not thinking about his own limitations. For that, we can salute him and wish his family and friends comfort in their great grief.
It just shows the difference between men who are heroes and will risk their own lives to save others. Quite a difference between him and the Coward Brounty Sheriffs deputies at that school in Parkland, Fl when there was still gunfire.
RIP, Sky-Man. May your spirit soar high.
Of course. Exactly why this is so heart breaking.
Strong lesson.
Your -guts- may be shrieking “GO! GO! GO!”, but you had better utilize your -brain- to do so, or you are likely just adding to the mess.