Army veteran Joshua Curtis, 38, was with his family at the main beach when his son and niece got caught in a strong rip current, his family said. Curtis successfully rescued the children; however ...

Joshua Curtis, who spent 15 years in the Army and earned the Purple Heart and Bronze Star, died rescuing his niece and son from a current during a trip to Fernandina Beach.

Emergency responders were alerted around 7:15 p.m. about swimmers in distress at a beach on the east edge of Fernandina Beach, a city on Florida’s Amelia Island, police said.