Rescuers of shark attacks in Del Mar receive medal for heroism

Kevin Barrett and Cameron Whiting were finishing a long swim in the ocean when they heard screams over the waves at Del Mar Beach.

Barrett, a 51-year-old financial adviser from San Diego, and Whiting, a 31-year-old vice president of a real estate firm who lives in Encinitas, looked at each other and decided to put their fears aside.

Together they rescued their teammate from the swimming club, who had just been bitten by a young great white shark, and took turns swimming him to safety.

The duo was awarded a Carnegie Medal for the rescue, the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission announced on Monday.

The Pittsburgh-based commission, founded in 1904 by tycoon and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, awards hero medals four times a year to those who take an extraordinary degree of risk to save the lives of others, or attempt to do so.

Among the 18 recipients in the third quarter of the year was Richard Fierro, a San Diego native who helped subdue a gunman at a Colorado Springs nightclub.

The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission sets strict criteria for nominating applicants, and its own investigators confirm the credibility of reported heroic deeds.

According to the rules for the medal, which is considered “North America's highest award for heroism,” the recipient must have left a place of safety or been in a dangerous situation when escape was possible in order to save another person.

The shark attack occurred on June 2. Whiting, Barrett and the swimmer they rescued, 46-year-old Caleb Adams, were among more than a dozen members of the North County Ocean Swimmers team swimming along the Del Mar shoreline that morning.

Barrett said in an earlier interview with the Union-Tribune that he and Whiting had just finished their swim when they heard their teammate scream around 9 a.m.

They found Adams with shark bite marks on his torso, arm and hand. They later learned that Adams had struck the shark twice to fend it off.

Barrett was the first to reach Adams. He turned himself and the injured man onto his back before pulling the injured man onto his chest. He began swimming on his back to shore.

Whiting and a surfer eventually caught up with them. The surfer offered his board in the rescue attempt.

Adams was placed on the surfboard. Whiting then laid on the injured swimmer's lower body and kicked his legs to propel the board. Barrett swam alongside them, keeping his hand on the board to stabilize it.

“I was able to say, 'Cam, I'm out of air. You need to get on the back of the surfboard. I'll swim next to you, but I need your strength,'” Barrett recalled in the previous interview.

Once the two were able to stand, they each took an arm and carried the victim up the beach to an ambulance. They examined the wounds until Adams was taken to a hospital, where he eventually recovered from his injuries.

Fierro's tribute comes nearly two years after a gunman in body armor opened fire at Club Q, an LGBTQ-friendly bar in Colorado, in November 2022. Fierro, a Colorado resident, is a graduate of Mira Mesa High and San Diego State University. He was at the bar with his family when the gunman opened fire.

Fierro, a former Army major with four combat tours under his belt, later told the Union-Tribune that he heard gunshots, saw muzzle flashes, smelled cordite and fell to the ground. The gunman fired at a Marine who tried to stop him, but the wounded sailor fought back. Fierro — who didn't notice the sailor — quickly lunged at the gunman, snatched his gun from his grasp and repeatedly struck the attacker in the back of the head.

The attack left five people dead – including Fierro's daughter's longtime boyfriend – and 25 others injured. The shooter pleaded guilty to state and federal crimes and is serving a life sentence.

Each of this quarter's rescuers will receive a $7,500 grant and a medal, which are expected to be presented to them in the coming months at a ceremony in the presence of their respective elected officials and first responders, a commission official said.

Originally published: September 23, 2024 at 17:20