A New Jersey native turned Coast Guard hero saved 165 lives in Texas’ deadly floods. Scott Ruskan, a 26-year-old rescue swimmer from Oxford, New Jersey, proved that real courage isn’t found in progressive platitudes but in selfless action, as the New York Post reports. While the left obsesses over pronouns, Ruskan risked his life for strangers.
Ruskan, who enlisted in 2021, completed grueling training in California before landing in Corpus Christi, Texas. On July 4, a monstrous rainstorm unleashed catastrophic flash floods in central Texas, claiming at least 80 lives. Ruskan’s first mission would be a trial by fire, far from the safe spaces of woke academia.
Stationed in Texas since November 2024, Ruskan prepped relentlessly, mastering the MH-65 helicopter and rescue swimming. “This is why we take those risks,” he told the Post. His humility shames the self-aggrandizing influencers clogging social media with empty virtue signals.
By July 5, Texas Task Force 1 called for Coast Guard backup near Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ summer camp. Flooded roads and raging currents left helicopters as the only escape for nearly 200 survivors. Unlike bureaucrats pushing diversity quotas, Ruskan focused on saving lives.
Ruskan’s team, including Blackhawk 60 and MH-65 helicopters, deployed at 7 a.m. Five campers, aged 8 and 9, perished, with one counselor and 11 girls missing. While the left debates “systemic inequities,” Ruskan faced real crises with no time for navel-gazing.
Weight limits grounded Ruskan, so he triaged on-site at Camp Mystic. “I’ll be more helpful on the ground,” he said. His practical mindset cuts through the fog of woke ideology that paralyzes so-called leaders in emergencies.
At the camp, Ruskan comforted shoeless, pajama-clad girls gripped by terror. “My main job was triaging, then comforting these kids,” he said. Contrast that with progressive activists who’d rather lecture than lend a hand in a crisis.
Ruskan directed helicopters to pluck survivors from danger. He called his aircrew “the best we could possibly have.” No DEI checklist here -- just competence and grit, the kind the left can’t seem to value.
Under brutal conditions, Ruskan’s ground leadership saved 165 people. “We did a lot of good that day,” he said, though he mourned the losses. His focus on results over feelings is a rebuke to the victimhood culture peddled by coastal elites.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hailed Ruskan as an “American hero” on social media. Her praise for his “selfless courage” resonates with conservatives tired of seeing heroism sidelined for political correctness. Ruskan embodies the values the left loves to mock.
“I’m just doing a job,” Ruskan said, shrugging off the hero label. His modesty exposes the hollowness of celebrity activists who crave applause for doing nothing. Real heroes don’t need a spotlight -- they need a mission.
Ruskan comforted campers facing “the worst day of their life.” “I can get you guys out of here if we remain calm,” he told them. His steady hand in chaos proves leadership isn’t about hashtags but action.
The mission saved most of Camp Mystic’s survivors, but 11 girls and a counselor remain missing. “The mission’s not over yet,” Ruskan said. While he’s back home, other agencies like the Air National Guard and Texas Task Force 1 keep searching.
Ruskan praised the Coast Guard and local crews still out there. “They’re still out there,” he said, honoring their relentless effort. Unlike woke policies that prioritize optics, these teams prioritize people.
“Any Coast Guard swimmer would’ve done the same,” Ruskan insisted. His deflection of praise highlights a truth the left ignores: duty, not identity, defines heroism. Ruskan’s actions speak louder than any progressive sermon.
