Two bystanders pulled a man from the Gulf of Mexico after the man accidentally drove a truck into the water, deputies said.

The incident happened Thursday at 12:20 p.m. at 14230 Gulf Blvd. in Madeira Beach.

According to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, 51-year-old Lawrence White, who works for the City of Madeira Beach, was collecting garbage on the beach in a city pick-up truck when he apparently lost control of the vehicle.

Deputies said White's truck hit a parked USF vehicle, which was driven to the beach by 29-year-old Zachary Tyler, who was surveying beach erosion for the university at the time.

White's truck then hit a beach cabana and three beach chairs, narrowly missing other beachgoers, including 60-year-old David Carefoote, who was visiting from Canada, deputies said. The truck then drove into the water and began to sink.

“At the last second, he ended up turning and kind of just glancingly hit our truck," said Tyler. “He then ran over a few cabana chairs and a couple umbrellas -- almost hit a gentleman just sitting by the beach. And then he actually sped up and then went straight into the ocean.”

Deputies said Carefoote and Tyler went into the water, pulled White from the truck and brought him to shore.

White was taken to St. Petersburg General Hospital for treatment of injuries described as not life-threatening. Deputies said it appears as though he suffered a medical episode that caused him to lose control of the truck.

The investigation continues.