Three teenagers are being called heroes after they jumped into action Monday to save a little boy from drowning.

Johnny Grail, 14, and his friends, Mike Dusek, 17, and Antonio Ezzo, 14, were fishing along the C-14 East River Canal in Margate Monday afternoon when they saw a boy fall into the water. They jumped in and saved four-year-old Nelson Martinez. Nelson was taken to Northwest Medical Center in stable condition and is doing okay.  

"I just think we did a good deed," Grail said.

Nelson slipped out of his house around 4 p.m., apparently without any adults noticing.

"He was just sitting there for about 20 minutes. He was throwing rocks and stuff. We thought there was a parent out there," Ezzo said.  

Dusek said Nelson was in the water for about a minute and a half. They didn't have to perform CPR on the boy and said he was crying when they pulled him out of the water.

"We were determined to get the kid out of the water," Grail said.

The teens said if they wouldn't think twice if they had to do the same thing again.

Margate Fire Rescue said the teens will be honored at an upcoming commissioners meeting with the highly respected Lifesavers Award.