Strapped into a harness, Josh Law was lowered from a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter into the rough Pacific Ocean in the pitch black night, far off the Mexican coast.
The force of the helicopter blades pummeled the water, whipping up spray and turbulence. The Coast Guard rescue swimmer couldn’t hear anything over the noise or see anything in the darkness. Waves of 6 to 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 meters) pummeled him.