Héctor Rafael Pérez Rivera is one of the few remaining professional lifeguards in Las Tunas. That, along with his extensive 14 years of expertise, is why he always goes to La Boca beach during the summer.

Las Tunas, Cuba.- He spoke with 26 while keeping a close eye on the waves, attentive to everything around him, his feet buried in the wet sand.

We learned from him that he works at Covarrubias Beach and lives in Vázquez, a town in the municipality of Puerto Padre, where he moves every day after he finishes his work during the summer season.

He relies heavily on young people who are on contract at this time of year and, incidentally, trains them; although he knows that with a salary of just over 3,000 pesos, they will have little interest in continuing the work when these months are over and life returns to normal.

"This has been a fairly quiet summer so far; we've only had two incidents, and they've been minor. Basically, the incidents that happen are related to kids whose floats drift away and they try to retrieve them on their own, or to the consumption of alcoholic beverages."

"Because people arrive and know that the sea is treacherous; you see that they behave well, they are calm, until after a few drinks they remember that they were many things, including swimming champions. That's when the scare comes."

We asked him about the canyon: Is it as terrifying as they say? And he replied resolutely that it is.

“It's quite dangerous. We have two currents, the one that fills and the one that empties. And the latter is the most dangerous, the ebb tide; anyone who falls in there, if they are not seen in time, gets a good scare or doesn't make it out alive.”

Héctor has seen a lot while searching the nearly 350 meters that separate La Boca from El Socucho. "There are situations that stay with you. I remember six years ago when I had to pull out a 17-year-old boy who was caught and crushed by the wave. I assure you that it is among the hardest things I have experienced here. He was very young, and seeing him like that was extremely difficult. I still talk about it, and it brings a lump to my throat."

He insists, always with his eyes fixed on the waves, that people come to the beach to enjoy themselves, but they must remain alert with all their senses.

"I strongly recommend that families keep a constant eye on their children. They are very restless; you take your eye off them for a minute and something happens. Just yesterday, a little girl about a year old got separated from her group and came walking alone across the sand from El Cocal to here, almost to the other side."

“Fortunately, a young couple saw her, realized she was alone, picked her up, and brought her to me. The patrol had to take her, go find her parents, and, of course, after fining them, return the little girl to them.”

His stories could keep us talking all afternoon, but he never stops watching the sea, and we know that his work today is more important than any possible anecdote.

So we thanked him for his time, said goodbye, and left him there, attentive, his gaze fixed on the waves.