No Way Out

After rescuing a swimmer caught in a rip tide, a couple of tough kids from Manny’s old neighborhood confront him, taunt him and give him grief for being with April, a white girl. Later, Manny’s mother, Teresa, shows up at the beach to tell him how proud she is of his accomplishments, and to meet his new girlfriend. April figures out that he hasn’t told his mother that she’s white, and thinks he’s ashamed to be with her. When Teresa finds out who April is, she talks with Manny about his confusion between his past life in the barrio and his new life at Baywatch. Manny feels better with his mother’s support, agrees to try and make up with April and invites her home to dinner.

Back at headquarters, April is getting out her anger and frustration in the gym when Craig walks by on his way out to do some recreational diving. He talks April into clearing her head by joining him and she enthusiastically agrees. Underwater they encounter sharks and find refuge inside a pipe tunnel. Suddenly they are forcibly sucked through a power plant intake pipe at tremendous speed. Injured, bruised, and their equipment damaged, they are finally dumped in a sixteen foot metal room, half filled with water. The turbines continue to roar and they are pulled toward the deadly blades. At the last moment, as Craig’s fin is being chopped by the blades, the turbines suddenly stops their cycle.

They spot a ladder and try to reach, and open, a hatch in the ceiling just as the turbines begin their next cycle. As April and Craig hang on, the ladder breaks off and drops into the water, slamming them into the grate in front of the turbines, and trapping April underwater. Craig furiously works his way to her in the rushing water, and brings her air though mouth to mouth while working to free her from the grate pinning her torso. He finally levers the grate away and pulls her head above water, but her leg is stilled trapped under the ladder. With the loss of blood and traumatic shock, April has trouble keeping her head above water while Craig works to free her. When she’s finally freed they hear the ominous click once again of the turbines beginning their cycle.

When April doesn’t show up to meet Manny for dinner with his mother, he becomes worried and talks to Mitch. Not only is April gone, but Craig’s date is waiting impatiently in the parking lot. Mitch immediately puts a call through to the boat, and hearing no reply, calls for a full search operation. JD and Newman locate the boat and dive to find them. As they search the bottom they discover Craig’s other swim fin by the open intake pipe. When the powerful surge begins, JD is also sucked into the pipe. Newman manages to fight the pull and swims back to the boat.

Inside the turbine room the incoming water has also brought in a shark that heads straight for April. Craig manages to distract it, hits it with a piece of the grate and the wounded shark is sucked into the turbines and killed, just as JD is hurled into the room. April grabs him as he rushes by while Craig holds onto her. Their grip gets weaker and weaker until Craig’s hands slip and they all tumble towards the turbines. Just then the turbines stop completely – they’ve been turned off! The three are able to use JD’s spare regulator to swim back to safety.

Written by…
Tanquil Lisa Collins
Directed by…
Gregory J. Bonann