Finn was participating in a routine training relay as part of his San Diego Junior Lifeguards internship when he ran into the ocean, dove into the water and struck his head on the ocean floor, according to his family. The impact briefly knocked him unconscious and caused a severe cervical spinal cord injury. Fellow lifeguards immediately rushed to his aid, providing critical care before Finn was transported to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla. The timing made the freak accident particularly devastating: it happened on the final day of the 17-year-old's junior lifeguard internship.
Finn and his family moved from San Diego to Texas approximately five years ago, but his mother, Courtney Renard, told media that her son returns to San Diego during the summer to participate in the Junior Lifeguards Program, which she described as his favorite part of the year.
At Scripps, Finn underwent emergency surgery to stabilize his cervical spine. According to his family's fundraiser, surgeons placed titanium instrumentation from C2 through C6 and replaced his C5 vertebra. Despite the severity of his injuries, Finn demonstrated some movement in his arms following surgery, though the family's initial update said he had no movement in his hands or legs. His mother recalled an extraordinary moment shortly before doctors performed the emergency operation. As medical personnel prepared him for surgery, Finn reportedly asked that his mask be removed so he could speak.
"He just told everyone I just wanted to thank you all so much for doing your best to try to keep me alive," Courtney told 10News.
Finn's recovery was initially expected to eventually take him to Craig Hospital, a nationally recognized spinal cord rehabilitation center in Colorado, where he would undergo intensive rehabilitation. But serious complications have turned his immediate recovery into another fight for survival. On August 13, his family reported that Finn was battling pneumonia and a staph infection and had already been sedated for six days as doctors struggled with fluid accumulating in his lungs.
Over the following days, doctors repeatedly placed Finn in a prone position, using a specialized rotating bed to position him on his stomach for extended periods in an effort to improve his breathing and help clear secretions his weakened body could not cough up. He also underwent bronchoscopies and required a blood transfusion. Then, on August 18, his family announced that Finn had been placed on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, an advanced form of life support that circulates blood outside the body to remove carbon dioxide and add oxygen, allowing severely compromised lungs an opportunity to rest and heal.
"They remove the blood from his body remove the CO2 and add oxygen," Courtney wrote. "This is letting his lungs heal after fighting for over 2 weeks to breathe."
Despite the frightening turn, his family remains hopeful.
"He's so strong and stubborn we remain optimistic he'll make a full recovery, but scary moment right now," Courtney wrote.
The accident has reverberated throughout San Diego's tight-knit lifeguard and beach communities. Prevent Drowning San Diego publicly expressed support for Finn, his family, friends and the wider lifeguard community, while Finn's mother said San Diego Lifeguard Chief James Gartland has personally visited him in the hospital.
Finn's recovery was initially expected to eventually take him to Craig Hospital, a nationally recognized spinal cord rehabilitation center in Colorado, where he would undergo intensive rehabilitation. But serious complications have turned his immediate recovery into another fight for survival. On August 13, his family reported that Finn was battling pneumonia and a staph infection and had already been sedated for six days as doctors struggled with fluid accumulating in his lungs.
Over the following days, doctors repeatedly placed Finn in a prone position, using a specialized rotating bed to position him on his stomach for extended periods in an effort to improve his breathing and help clear secretions his weakened body could not cough up. He also underwent bronchoscopies and required a blood transfusion. Then, on August 18, his family announced that Finn had been placed on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, an advanced form of life support that circulates blood outside the body to remove carbon dioxide and add oxygen, allowing severely compromised lungs an opportunity to rest and heal.
"They remove the blood from his body remove the CO2 and add oxygen," Courtney wrote. "This is letting his lungs heal after fighting for over 2 weeks to breathe."
Despite the frightening turn, his family remains hopeful.
"He's so strong and stubborn we remain optimistic he'll make a full recovery, but scary moment right now," Courtney wrote.
The accident has reverberated throughout San Diego's tight-knit lifeguard and beach communities. Prevent Drowning San Diego publicly expressed support for Finn, his family, friends and the wider lifeguard community, while Finn's mother said San Diego Lifeguard Chief James Gartland has personally visited him in the hospital.
"I think people look at San Diego at this big place, but I've lived here my whole life until five years ago - and we really are kind of a small community," Courtney told 10News.
That community has responded with an extraordinary fundraising effort. As of Wednesday afternoon, a GoFundMe established to help Finn and his family had surged to more than $76,000 toward an $80,000 goal, with nearly 600 donations. The fundraiser's goal has already been increased as donations poured in. Money raised will help cover months of specialized rehabilitation, medical treatment, adaptive equipment, travel and other expenses associated with Finn's recovery. His family said the support will also allow them to remain by their son's side while confronting the enormous uncertainties ahead.
"We are so overwhelmed by the love and support y'all have given us," Courtney wrote in the latest update. "This fundraiser will allow us to be here with our son for as much as we can on his long road to recovery, and face the unknown challenges that lie ahead."
For now, plans for intensive spinal rehabilitation have been overshadowed by the urgent battle to stabilize Finn's lungs. What began as an ordinary training exercise on the final day of a summer internship has transformed into a life-altering medical ordeal for a teenager who traveled hundreds of miles each year to return to the San Diego lifeguard program he loved.
His mother has one immediate request for the community as Finn remains critically ill.
"Just please pray for him," she said.
SanDiegoVille will update this story as additional information regarding Finn's condition and recovery becomes available.
Originally published on August 18, 2026.
That community has responded with an extraordinary fundraising effort. As of Wednesday afternoon, a GoFundMe established to help Finn and his family had surged to more than $76,000 toward an $80,000 goal, with nearly 600 donations. The fundraiser's goal has already been increased as donations poured in. Money raised will help cover months of specialized rehabilitation, medical treatment, adaptive equipment, travel and other expenses associated with Finn's recovery. His family said the support will also allow them to remain by their son's side while confronting the enormous uncertainties ahead.
"We are so overwhelmed by the love and support y'all have given us," Courtney wrote in the latest update. "This fundraiser will allow us to be here with our son for as much as we can on his long road to recovery, and face the unknown challenges that lie ahead."
For now, plans for intensive spinal rehabilitation have been overshadowed by the urgent battle to stabilize Finn's lungs. What began as an ordinary training exercise on the final day of a summer internship has transformed into a life-altering medical ordeal for a teenager who traveled hundreds of miles each year to return to the San Diego lifeguard program he loved.
His mother has one immediate request for the community as Finn remains critically ill.
"Just please pray for him," she said.
SanDiegoVille will update this story as additional information regarding Finn's condition and recovery becomes available.
Originally published on August 18, 2026.
