South Haven’s new lifeguard program is already being credited with saving the life of a man who collapsed from cardiac arrest at South Beach. That man turned out to be the husband of Mayor Annie Brown.
On June 15, Brown delivered a two-minute speech thanking lifeguards, emergency services and the South Haven Police Department for the assistance and lifesaving efforts provided to her husband, Jeff Fibrandt, after he collapsed Tuesday, June 9. The speech came during a meeting of South Haven City Council.
Fibrandt was reportedly chatting with lifeguards after swimming in South Beach when he suddenly fell to the ground and became unresponsive, according to a statement from the city on Facebook.
According to Brown, seconds before he collapsed, Fibrandt told lifeguards: “It looks like (you’re) going to have a slow morning.”
The lifeguards immediately performed CPR, then deployed an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) to revive Fibrandt. He was transported to St. Joseph’s Corewell Lakeland Hospital.
“From the moment I walked (into) the ER, and almost every day, doctors and nurses (have) told me that I should buy lottery tickets because Jeff was lucky to be alive,” Brown said. “In fact, one of his doctors said he was alive specifically because trained and highly qualified lifeguards were there to immediately perform CPR.”
Lifeguards returned to South Haven over Memorial Day
Lifeguards returned to South Beach — a popular swimming destination — on Memorial Day 2026 after a 25-year hiatus. In the late 1990s, lifeguards were removed from several beachtowns in Michigan, including South Haven, due to staffing and financial shortfalls. In recent years, safety advocacy groups have strongly pushed for their return.
Contact Sarah Moore @ smoore@lsj.com
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: New lifeguards credited with saving mayor’s husband in South Haven
Reporting by Sarah Moore, USA TODAY NETWORK / Lansing State Journal
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By Sarah Moore, USA TODAY NETWORK | USA TODAY Network
