7-year-old boy swims to shore after boating accident to find help for family

A seven-year-old boy from the Jacksonville, Florida, swam an hour to shore to find help after a boating accident, saving his family's lives in the process.

Chase Poust was with his sister Abagail and his father Steven, fishing off of the Florida coast as the family does often, when things went horribly wrong.

According to local outlet ABC 13 Eyewitness News, the two children were swimming in the water and Abagail was swimming in the back of the boat, when a strong current caused her to lose her grip and started sweeping her away.

"The current was so strong that my sister—she usually hangs out at the back of the boat and—she let go so I let go of the boat and grabbed her and then I was stuck," Chase told the local news station during an interview.

Steven immediately went after Abigail. Chase, without thinking twice, headed for the distant shore—as he was told to do by his father, who stayed with Abagail.

"I told them I loved him because I wasn't sure what's going to happen. I tried to stick with her as long as I could--with both of them. I wore myself out, and she drifted away from me," Steven Poust told the media outlet.

He made it there an hour later and immediately knocked on a neighbor's door. They called for help, and Florida Fish and Wildlife came to the rescue, aided by the Jacksonville Fire Department and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.

"We're here. By the grace of God, we're here," Steven commented later.