Jacksonville firefighter Otto Scherick swam into rough water off Big Talbot Island on Saturday, Oct. 17, to rescue three boaters clinging to their capsized vessel.

Scherick, a Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department (JFRD) firefighter, was walking a trail near the beach with his girlfriend when he heard screaming, according to News4Jax. He sprinted to the shoreline and spotted the boaters waving for help from their overturned boat offshore.

He was off duty. No radio, no crew, no equipment.

Scherick swam out to the group and sized up the conditions. With no life jackets on board, he disconnected the boat's gas tank and used it as a makeshift flotation device, JFRD said. He then guided the boaters toward land. A bystander also swam out and stayed with the group the entire way in, according to First Coast News.

The first call came in at approximately 10:47 a.m., News4Jax reported. Callers estimated the boaters were as far as 800 yards from shore. By 11:14 a.m., all three were safely back on land, where the C shift crew from JFRD Engine 66 met them. No injuries were reported.

JFRD Director and Fire Chief Percy Golden II praised Scherick's response. "Otto heard a call for help and ran toward it," Golden said, according to Action News Jax. "He didn't have a radio, a crew, or any equipment, just his training and good judgment …"

JFRD Deputy Division Chief of Services Colin Aguilar called the gas-tank idea ingenious. He noted that windy, rough water and a busy weekend with the air show made conditions especially risky for boaters, according to First Coast News.

Aguilar urged boaters to wear life jackets, keep boats in working order and check weather conditions before heading out. JFRD said anyone who sees a person in distress on the water should call 911 and throw something that floats. Only people trained in water rescue should enter the water to help.