Corion Evans, 16, of Mississippi was hanging out with friends on the banks of the Pascagoula River in Moss Point when he witnessed a car drive off a boat launch and into the water around 2:30 a.m. Sunday. As the vehicle began to sink, Evans immediately ran over, stripping off his shoes and shirt as he plunged into the water while the car’s three teenage female occupants began shouting for help.

“I was just like, ‘I can’t let none of these folks die. They need to get out the water,'” Evans, a Pascagoula High School student, told Biloxi, Mississippi, ABC affiliate WLOX. “So, I just started getting them. I wasn’t even thinking about nothing else.”

One of Evans’ friends also jumped in and helped him hoist the girls onto the top of their vehicle, according to the station.

“I was behind them trying to keep them above water and swim with them at the same time,” Evans said.

Moss Point Police Officer Gary Mercer responded to the scene and began helping Evans bring the teens to shore, but one of the girls “began panicking,” dragging Mercer underwater, police said.

Evans quickly realized that Mercer had begun to struggle, swallowing water as he tried to reach the surface only to be pulled down again.

“I turned around. I see the police officer. He’s drowning. He’s going underwater, drowning, saying, ‘Help!'” Evans explained. “So, I went over there. I went and I grabbed the police officer and I’m like swimming him back until I feel myself I can walk.”

The officer and three teens were taken to the hospital following the incident and were recovering, according to the report.

The Moss Point Police Department said that the driver of the vehicle said she had been using her GPS at the time of the incident and “did not realize she was going into the water.”

The Department praised Evans for preventing what could have resulted in tragedy.

“The police department and I commend Mr. Evans’s bravery and selflessness he displayed by risking his own safety to help people in danger,” Moss Point Chief Brandon Ashley said. “If Mr. Evans had not assisted, it could have possibly turned out tragically instead of all occupants rescued safely.”

On Tuesday, Moss Point city officials presented Evans with a certificate of commendation for his heroism in rescuing the four people. They also recognized Mercer for his “bravery in the rescue.”

Evans said he has been swimming since he was three years old and didn’t hesitate to jump in the river.

“Twenty-five yards out, so it was a lot of swimming. My legs were so tired after,” he said. “Anything could’ve been in that water, though. But I wasn’t thinking about it.”