SCPD Officer Honored for Dramatic Pool Rescue

More than five years after Suffolk County Police Officer Brian Christopher jumped into a backyard swimming pool and helped save a drowning man’s life, the Sixth Precinct officer has been honored for his heroics, and the man he rescued is now serving alongside him.

Christopher received a Life Saving Award recognizing his actions during the July 24, 2021 emergency in Mount Sinai.

Christopher was on patrol when a call came in reporting a man at the bottom of a swimming pool. He happened to be nearby and was the first officer to arrive. “I immediately ran to the backyard, where I was told he was at the bottom of the pool,” Christopher recalled. “I jumped in immediately.”

Christopher pulled Vivek Panneerselvam from the water with help from his family, climbed out and immediately began CPR. Paramedics then took over. Panneerselvam had been underwater for nearly five minutes, according to Suffolk County Police.

Christopher said learning that Panneerselvam ultimately made a complete recovery made the dramatic rescue even more meaningful.

“Just grateful to know that, fast forward now, that he’s made a complete recovery,” Christopher said.

But Panneerselvam’s story didn’t end with his recovery.

Already serving in the Army Reserve, Panneerselvam was inspired by the experience to join the Suffolk County Police Department as an Auxiliary Police officer, turning the man Christopher once raced to save into a member of the department’s own ranks.

The bond between the two has endured long after that terrifying afternoon.

“Brian, you know, you’re always going to be my hero, right?” Panneerselvam said. “And hero to me and to my family.”

Christopher’s award recognizes his “courageous and life saving actions” and notes that his efforts gave Panneerselvam “another chance at life.”