A little-known Coast Guard officer has been hailed as a hero after rescuing 165 people from the Texas hill country floods.

Petty Officer and rescue swimmer Scott Ruskan, a native of New Jersey, was on the scene when the Guadalupe River rose dramatically, causing flooding after 5–11 inches of rain fell in a short amount of time.

It was his first rescue mission, but he must have remained calm and reactive as he responded to search and rescue calls at Camp Mystic, a girl’s summer camp right in the path of the flooding.

Flying to the camp in a helicopter, Ruskan said he “saw a huge crowd of about 200 kids at a campsite.”

“We were like, ‘Cool, that’s where we’re going to go and get out as many people out as we can,’” Ruskan told Fox. 

Later interviewed by CNN, Ruskan said the conditions for flying produced by Tropical Storm Barry were some of the worst he’s ever seen, and the pilot needed four attempts before he could land the helicopter.

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“There was no other way to get them out,” said Ruskan. “Bridges were gone, roadways were gone, and the water was coming up too high for boat rescue.”

“Cell service was bad. Radio reception was bad on my comms, so I really didn’t have any communication with the outside for about three hours.”

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Despite not knowing what was going on around him. He remained focused and led 165 people, mostly children, in groups of 10 to 15 to army helicopters which could airlift them to high ground.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called him “an American hero” in a post on X, though like all good heroes, Ruskan said he was just doing his job, one that “anyone” could have done.

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