VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Officials down at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront are urging people to stay out of the water when conditions are rough like on Monday after a rescue was made near 16th Street less than two days after two men went missing.
Watch: One in critical condition after washing ashore at Oceanfront; 2 feared drowned: VBPD
"All of a sudden I heard this loud help like a help I will never hear again," Lydia James, who was visiting Virginia Beach, said.
Lydia and Kain Swenson were both visiting the Oceanfront from Richmond for a long weekend but unfortunately for them, the water has been rough.
"It's so tough because it looks like you're so close to shore but the waves are deep they're pulling you right out," Swenson who is also a lifeguard, said.
"We saw them kind of jumping around in the waves, the brother and sister went forward, one of the siblings went back and in seconds she's 20 feet out there," Swenson said.
Watch: 'The waves had already taken them out:' Man fears brother drowned at Oceanfront
The two called 911, James even ran from the beach to the front of the Dairy Queen to wave down first responders.
Within minutes crews were in the water and were able to rescue the girl.
Swenson said the girl was treading water for over 10 minutes to stay alive.
"I hope she sees this and I hope she knows how proud of you we both are," Swenson said.
The girl rescued was taken to the hospital along with another person but both are in stable condition.
James and Swenson said this is the second rescue they saw in just three days.
Watch: Red flags up! VB Oceanfront lifeguards make 11 rescues over the weekend
The first was Saturday night when police responded to three swimmers in distress down at 16th Street.
One man was found ashore and taken to the hospital but two others are still missing.
Police have identified the two as 22-year-old Sergio Olcot Ajbal and 22-year-old Sergio Xinico from Chesapeake.
On Sunday News 3 spoke with Guilmer Joselino who said one of his brothers was pulled from the water and taken to the hospital.
He said his other brother was one of the people still missing and the second person was a friend.
Watch: Missing VB Oceanfront swimmers identified as police resume search
"I was with them, but I couldn't do anything," Joselino said. "I asked for help, but when help finally came we couldn't do anything. The waves had already taken them out."
Virginia Beach first responders continued recovery efforts along the shoreline on Monday.
Virginia Beach Police said the efforts will continue as long as the weather and water conditions are safe.
Now that the beach is in the off-season and there are no guards on stands, Tom Gill with Virginia Beach Life Saving Service says it's important to know what water conditions are like ahead of time.
For the last few days, the beach has been under Red Flag warnings meaning you should not go in the water.
"Stay out of the water," Gill said. "I wouldn't even go knee-deep or ankle-deep if you get knocked down by a big wave you get pulled out and you are in a mix."
Lifeguards still patrol the beach from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. through October 13.
You can get alerts from the City of Virginia Beach about water conditions through your phone by texting BEACH to 67283.
