Mitch is on a beach in Hawaii where he witnesses a family washed off the rocks. Mitch immediately reverts to lifeguard mode and pulls them from the water. He finds the daughter unconscious and rescues her too. She resumes breathing, but is still taken to the hospital in a coma.
This long-running series follows the adventures of a team of lifeguards on the crowded beaches of Los Angeles County. Veteran lifeguard Mitch Buchannon watches over the younger lifeguards that come and go with each passing season as they keep the beaches safe for vacationers. Frequently he must take action to save them from the raging seas and from the raging tempers that sometimes flare up between the young guards in this stressful job.