10-year-old recalls teacher who died saving her from Myrtle Beach rip current

Digital Curator

(Video courtesy of WFMY, DeKalb County School District via CNN Newsource) —

A 10-year-old girl in Greensboro, North Carolina, survived after a strong current swept her into the water at a popular South Carolina beach and a stranger jumped in to help, her family said.

Sadly, Derrick Moore, a Georgia elementary school teacher who rescued her from a rip current off Myrtle Beach, died after the rescue.

Now, the young girl and her family are expressing their gratitude for Moore’s heroism and are recounting the scary day at the beach.

Summer McCallum told WFMY that she tried to swim and float, but the current kept pulling her under.

“I was just scared, and then my feet couldn’t touch the ground,” she said, later adding, “The wave just kept going over my head.”

The girl was caught in a rip current on Aug. 7 near 10th Avenue South in Myrtle Beach, according to the Myrtle Beach Police Department. Derrick Moore entered the ocean and got her safely to shore but was then pulled underwater by the current, police said.

The incident happened after lifeguards had gone off duty.

Her uncle, Ernest McCallum, told WFMY he was on shore packing up when he saw her head above the water and realized she was in trouble.

“I turned around, and I see her head just looking straight up at the sky. So, um, I’m thinking, is she, is she, she must be playing because I just seen her and everything was fine. Just turned around and it was fine,” he said.

Ernest said he ran into the water to reach her.

“I’m swimming, I’m not feeling, um, nothing under my feet. So I, I will continue to swim in the water, some reason like it was crazy, you know, the waves hitting me,” Ernest said.

Others jumped in to help. Among them was Moore.

“I saw him coming, and he was like, ‘Grab my arm,’ and I grabbed it, but like he was also struggling once he got to me,” Summer said.

After she made it back to shore, Summer was unclear about what happened to Moore.

“And I thought he was still out there trying to, like, swim or something,” she said.

Moore’s body washed ashore the next morning.

“He saved my life because I didn’t have to go back out there, certainly saved my niece’s life. He just became a hero to us all,” Ernest said of Moore.

If she could talk to him today, Summer said she knows what she would say to Moore.

“I would say thank you. I really owe my life to you,” she said.

Summer’s mother, Kamille Raines, who wasn’t at the beach at the time of the situation, said she has spent the days thinking about what happened. She told WFMY she’s cherishing every moment she has with Summer.

“It feels like taking my next breath,” she said. “It feels like the greatest gift.”

While she’ll never get to meet her daughter’s hero, Raines said she’s going to spend the rest of her life showing him gratitude.

“Just thinking about his mom. Because of Derrick, I don’t have to know what it feels like to lose a child,” Raines said through tears.

Beloved teacher known as ‘Coach’

Moore was a teacher at Rockbridge Elementary School in Georgia’s DeKalb County School District. He previously taught at Jolly Elementary School.

His students affectionately called him “Coach,” the district said.

“The DeKalb County School District is deeply saddened by the passing of Mr. Derrick Moore, a beloved educator and valued member” of the district family, officials said in a statement.

The district said Moore cared deeply for his students and made a lasting impact on the students, families, colleagues and communities he served.

“His presence, care, and dedication to education will be deeply missed,” the district said.

Moore leaves behind four children, his family said.

See more in the video player above.

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Graham Cawthon of Hearst Television sister station WJCL contributed to this report.