That afternoon Broward County Regional Communications received the call reporting a vehicle that went into a canal in the parking lot of the Walmart located at 3001 N. State Road 7 in Lauderdale Lakes.

BSO Pompano Beach District Deputy Andrew Alencar had just finished working a detail at the location when he was alerted of the emergency and immediately responded. He was the first one on scene.

“I rushed over there and spotted the vehicle and upon approaching the vehicle, I saw a lady and a baby on the back seat of the vehicle, and the vehicle was sinking. I knew I didn’t have much time, so I needed to act,” Deputy Alencar said.

Audrey Villieres moved to the backseat with her two-year-old granddaughter, Ameika Brown, as the car was rapidly sinking. “I could see on their faces that they were very shocked. The vehicle was going down fast and at that time I tried just to focus on what I had to do,” Deputy Alencar said.

He knew every second mattered, so he quickly jumped into the canal and swam towards them. “When I reached the vehicle, I realized I couldn’t reach the bottom.” Deputy Alencar said he used his window plunger to break the window and was able to retrieve the child. “When I held the baby, it was hard to swim because I couldn’t touch the bottom. So, I held the baby above my head, I went down in the water and took a couple of steps and was able to swim back to shore.”

Once the child was safe on dry land, Deputy Alencar immediately swam back to the car to save the grandmother, “I went back, was able to pry the door open, and retrieve the lady from inside and swim her back to shore,” Deputy Alencar said.

Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue on scene assisted both grandmother and granddaughter, who though shaken up by the ordeal, were in good condition. Investigators later determined the accident may have occurred due to a possible vehicle malfunction.

The deputy was transported to a local hospital to be treated for ingesting canal water and minor cuts, but he kept wondering how the baby was doing, “I remember when I got out of the water and was walking to my car. I remember asking for the baby. ‘How’s the baby? How’s the baby?’ I was concerned,” Deputy Alencar said.

Deputy Alencar received his answer two weeks later when he was reunited with the family he saved at the scene of the accident. He was joined by both grandmother and granddaughter as well as Sheree Linton, the child’s mother, and Dabria Moulton, the child’s sister. A touching moment for all.

Villieres relived the moment of the accident, “It was frightening. I felt so happy when I saw him coming towards me. I had the baby in my hands, and he broke the glass, and I gave him the baby. Somebody took the baby, and he came back.”

“I am so happy to see him now. I didn’t know he was in the hospital, and I said, “Oh my God, save him, don’t let anything bad happen to him because he saved me from the water. So, I thank God I get to see him; happy to see that he is ok,” Villieres said.

It was also an emotional moment for Linton to meet the deputy who saved both her mother and her younger daughter’s lives. She can still remember the moment she learned they were both in danger.

“I had a panic attack, I couldn’t breathe, so I stopped the car for a little bit. Then I catch myself, and I drove here to the Walmart,” Linton said.

Linton was relieved to find both her mother and daughter alive and safe. “I was so happy that he was working at the Walmart that day, at that time, because if he wasn’t working there, I don’t know what would have happened,” she said.

Days have gone by since the accident, but the feelings of what could have been remain raw for the family.

“Stuff like this. It still doesn’t feel real. I wake up every morning and I’m just like, ‘God, is this real?’ They really were saved from the accident; they went into the water. This is something you see on a television show, and I see how people don’t make it out because the car when being submerged in the water, all the doors are stuck,” said Moulton, the child’s sister.

Two weeks after the incident, on April 3, the family thanked the deputy in person for his selfless actions. Although a deputy’s mission is to protect and serve, this family says they don’t take his actions for granted.

“He was off duty, his job or not, he still did it. He was off duty. He did this out of the kindness in his heart and that shows how brave and compassionate he is,” Moulton said.

Deputy Alencar says his choice was simple, “Before being a deputy, I am a father, so when I do anything for the community, I always picture doing something for my family.”

Now, Linton says, her family share a special bond of gratitude with Deputy Alencar, “I thank God for him. He was in the right place at the right time.”