Canadian man rescues 2 swimmers after riptide sweeps them into Lake Superior in Duluth

Two young women swimming off a Duluth beach were rescued by a passerby after a riptide swept them out into Lake Superior.

The Duluth Fire Department said it responded Friday evening to a report of two swimmers in distress off the 800 block of S. Lake Avenue on Park Point. When they arrived, they found the juvenile swimmers had been saved from danger by a Toronto man who'd been walking on the beach with a companion.

Branislav Molnar said he heard a cry for help, according to the Duluth Fire Department. He reported that one of the swimmers had mostly made it to shore, and that he quickly went in for the second. Both swimmers were examined by paramedics, but neither needed medical care.

One swimmer said she was wading in chest deep water when she was instantly swept off her feet and pulled out into the lake, the Fire Department said. Her friend went into the water, but she was also pulled out into the lake.

The Fire Department said it had changed beach warning signs to "red" Friday morning after the National Weather Service issued a beach hazard advisory about rip currents. Red flags indicate that near-shore conditions aren't safe for swimming, and that people are advised to stay out of the water.

The Fire Department said that Lake Superior along Park Point can produce rip currents reaching more than 100 yards offshore.