Surf Cat

This Monday, August 24, the Encinitas community is gathering at Moonlight Beach at 10 a.m. to honor the life of 24-year-old surfer and Encinitas lifeguard Blake Dresner.

Last weekend, on a surf trip to Salina Cruz with a handful of close friends, Dresner suffered a fatal injury while surfing. According to Yehuda Ben-Hamo, one of the surfers on the trip, Dresner pulled into a closeout tube at a beachbreak in Salina Cruz, Mexico called Playa Abierta, and suffered an injury to the main artery in his neck while underwater. Despite the best life-saving efforts from the crew on hand — including a travel nurse with years of experience in the trauma unit — Dresner passed away before the ambulance even arrived on the scene.

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Sad news on the passing of a beloved local surfer and lifeguard who tragically lost his life while surfing in Mexico. Below is a statement from the family. On behalf of Dan, Linda and Allison Dresner: To our family, friends and community: On Saturday, August 15th, Blake Dresner passed away after sustaining a fatal injury while surfing. He was on Mainland Mexico in the town of Salina Cruz, Oaxaca. He was fortunate to be surrounded by good friends, who did everything they could to save him. His father Dan is currently in Mexico working with authorities to bring Blake home. Blake was an Encinitas Lifeguard and will always be known as a dedicated, capable waterman whose heart belonged to the ocean. We will all miss his smile, his energy and his never ending passion to search for the perfect wave. We appreciate the outpouring of love and concern. Many have asked how to help and we thank you for your generosity. Upon return to Encinitas, we will update everyone including plans to celebrate his life. In the meantime, the family contact is Steve Burrows and can be reached at slburrito@gmail.com

A post shared by Encinitas Magazine (@encinitasmag) on Aug 18, 2020 at 1:49pm PDT

The Encinitas community has shown an outpouring of support to the Dresner family after hearing of the tragic news. “Blake was an Encinitas Lifeguard and will always be known as a dedicated, capable waterman whose heart belonged to the ocean,” wrote Dresner’s family in an Instagram post. “We will all miss his smile, his energy and his never ending passion to search for the perfect wave. We appreciate the outpouring of love and concern. Many have asked how to help and we thank you for your generosity.”

According to Ben-Hamo, Dresner “was a fearless hell-man who would charge anything from shallow reefs in Java to massive Todos Santos” and was “an overall waterman who was known as a local legend in the Encinitas community. He ran the lineup at his local watering hole known as D street…Blake will surely be missed.”

Dresner’s family and friends are hosting a paddle out on Monday, August 24th at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas, CA to honor Blake’s life, his involvement in the community and his remarkable talent in the water. The paddle out will begin at 10 a.m at D Street. Those who do not wish to paddle out will gather (while observing COVID-19 protocols) on the beach and in the grassy hill just to the south of the Encinitas Safety Center at Moonlight Beach.

Our thoughts are with the Dresner family and all of his friends.