BIDDEFORD — Four vacationers from Montreal caught in a rip current at Fortune’s Rocks Beach on Wednesday, say the event wasnʼt going to prevent them from going to the beach again.

On Wednesday around 4 p.m. two adults and two children went into the water at Fortune’s Rocks Beach and got pulled into a rip current, said Lifeguard Captain Christopher Lessard.

Lifeguards on the beach wasted no time, called for backup and cleared the water of other swimmers.

Lessard and four other lifeguards, armed with a surfboard, rescue board and rescue buoys, quickly worked together to retrieve the swimmers and bring them safely back to the shore.

All four people caught in the rip current were taken to an area hospital.

Melanie Octeau, a family member and friend to those rescued from the rip current, said in an email that all four had been released from the hospital Wednesday night.

“Everyone is okay,” she wrote in the email on Thursday morning.

Parks and Recreation Director Carl Walsh said being a lifeguard is not an easy job, and when an emergency happens, theyʼve got to be ready to respond quickly.

“What they did was incredible. They did what they were trained to do and they did it well,” Walsh said.

Lessard, who has been a lifeguard for 23 years, said events like Wednesdayʼs donʼt happen often, but lifeguards need to be prepared at all times. Lifeguards workout in the mornings, doing a combination of swimming, running and paddling, and routinely conduct mock rescues in the water, he said.

“Their training came into play and everyone responded perfectly. It was well done,” said Lessard.

Octeau said she is part of a group of three families from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, that have vacationed together every summer in Biddeford since 2009.

“This is the best place in the world for us,” she said.

The family wanted to thank “the amazing lifeguards” who saved their lives on Wednesday, Octeau said.

:They were so professional and quick,” she said. Octeau also thanked the police and first responders who came to their assistance.

“We will bring the kids back to the beach today (Thursday) so they (can) enjoy the rest of their vacations,” she said.

Lessard advises beach goers to ask lifeguards about water conditions before entering the water. A rip current is a current of water that runs away from the shore. Rip currents wonʼt pull people under water, but will pull them further out into the ocean, said Lessard. If stuck in a rip current, donʼt try to swim against it, advises Lessard. Instead, try to stay calm and swim parallel to the shore to get out of the current.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].