Twitter Celebrates Ex-WWE Star Al Snow After He Saves Child From Riptide

Ex-WWE superstar Al Snow is being hailed as a superhero on Twitter after saving the life of a boy after he was almost swept away in a rip current in the Gulf of Mexico.

Once Twitter users found out about Snow's heroic efforts, many users expressed their appreciation for the former wrestler on their respective pages.

Ring of Honor wrestling superstar Angelina Love said, "God bless you @TheRealAlSnow and God bless that boy! What an amazing story."

Hot 97 Host and Wrestling Analyst Peter Rosenberg said, "Just watched the first season of tough enough and my number 1 thought was -- man Al Snow is awesome...then you see this .. a GRRRRRRRREAT GUY."

Finally, Twitter user @Bendijim said, "I'm sure you are too humble to be comfortable with the praise coming your way but you did save someone's life and that should be recognized as the big deal it is! I'm sure the family will think so. Well done."

Snow also thanked a number of fans and supporters on Twitter regarding the incident.

On Friday, Snow, whose real name is Allen Ray Sarven, jumped into action after the boy fell into the water. Snow told TMZ that he was able to save the boy before he drowned at Santa Rosa Beach in South Walton, Florida.

A responding lifeguard was able to get Snow and the little boy back to shore, using a flotation device, according to South Walton Fire Officials. The lifeguard also comforted the boy's mom who was visibly distraught after the incident.

Rip currents are difficult to maneuver in and Snow said that saving the boy from the rip current wore him out.

"I was able to stay up," said Snow, "and hand him off to the lifeguard and I made my way back across to my friend and we went up on the beach and I felt like I was about to collapse. I was exhausted."

If you're stuck in a rip current, don't panic and don't swim directly back to shore. As opposed to trying to tackle the force of thousands of gallons of rapid-moving water, swim parallel to the shore until you're out of the rip current, then swim diagonally back to the beach, according to Visit Florida.

Snow made his wrestling debut in 1982 in Ohio. Snow wrestled for a number of other wrestling companies for over a decade before entering the WWF. He wrestled for both the WWF and WWE before being released in 2007. He currently handles day-to-day operations for Ohio Valley Wrestling.