With a tan complexion, a bright white-teeth smile and a “Baywatch" physique, Elie Maroun looks like he’s straight out of a TV series. Sitting in his brother's restaurant, situated right by the sea in Kfar Abida, Batroun district, Maroun takes pride in his reputation extending beyond local shores.

Just last weekend, the thirty-year-old rescued another person from drowning this summer, adding to three other reported cases. "Those are the well-known stories. Since the beginning of the year, I've been involved in 20 rescue operations," he said. "When you save a life, it's an indescribable feeling."

Known as the "beach guardian," his phone number is "like an emergency hotline, like the Red Cross or Civil Defense," according to the local mokhtar, Antoine Romanos.

"He's been playing this role for a long time. It's as if he's created his own rescue center. By doing so, he's alleviated some of the burden on the state, and we are grateful to him," Romanos continued.

"I can't see someone in peril and not help," explains Maroun, even though he risks his life with every rescue operation. "Recently, while trying to save someone, a wave knocked me off my jet ski and propelled me towards the rocks. I nearly lost my life, but managed to rescue the struggling swimmer in the end," he recounted. He also cautioned, "One mistake and you could drown too. Anyone not trained for this shouldn't attempt a rescue."

Father to a four-year-old daughter, Maroun isn't a certified lifeguard but serves in Lebanon's Internal Security Forces (ISF). Since the crisis, when not in uniform, he has managed a modest family-owned jet ski business. He gives swimming lessons in the summer, and in the winter works as a local sports coach. Yet, he remains ready to save lives from drowning throughout the year. "My brother is a warrior," said his younger brother, Maroun, who is also trained in lifesaving.

A "bad student" in school, Maroun was pushed by his father nearly 18 years ago to join the ISF. "I didn't want my children to leave the country, so I encouraged them to join security institutions," said Rafic Maroun. "I loved sports, the sea... School didn't matter much to me, just look at my physique," admits Elie Maroun with a laugh.

He has honed multiple skills: champion in crawl swimming, trained in first aid and sea rescue with Civil Defense and the Red Cross, as well as completing various ISF training courses. Upon learning of his recent rescues, the ISF contacted him to "congratulate" him and express "their pride." 

"My children are champions. I raised them all like that," Rafic Maroun boasted, speaking of his six children whom he taught to swim when they were all a year and a half old.

"We live on the sea. In winter, the waves reach our windows. My father feared we'd fall into the water without knowing how to swim," Maroun explained, noting that this year, he couldn't save two people from drowning. "They were already dead when I reached them. It's tough when that happens. I can't sleep at night, but I trust in God."

Ultimately, Elie Maroun is "just another Lebanese guy," facing the economic crisis for the past five years. "In this country, no matter how hard you work, moving forward seems impossible. But we adapt as best we can," he reflects. Despite everything, he doesn't see himself leaving the country yet, "If I do, who will save people from drowning at sea?"