'Brave' surfer praised for helping to save swimmers

A surfer’s “quick thinking and bravery” helped save the lives of two swimmers who got into trouble near a County Londonderry beach, the coastguard has said.

Daniel McAleese was out walking on Wednesday evening at Portstewart Strand when he heard screaming from one of two women who were swimming close to rocks.

She told him she had not seen her friend in more than a minute.

After some time, Mr McAleese spotted her face down before jumping in and pulling her to safety.

The Coleraine Coastguard said his actions “undoubtedly helped in the saving of two lives”.

The incident happened at about 19:30 BST when Mr McAleese heard shouting and “climbed down the cliff face to where one of the women had been washed up on to a rock ledge”.

The 30-year-old told BBC News NI she was bleeding.

"She was obviously in a lot of distress as she had not seen her friend in over a minute," he said.

"Myself and the girl tried to locate a head bobbing up somewhere.

"I was incredibly concerned."

Mr McAleese said that "eventually I saw a tuft of hair pop up and jumped in there".

"I managed to get a hold of the girl and get her face and mouth above the surface; at that point she wasn’t responsive but after about 20 seconds she regained consciousness."

He said a "few bystanders came down to help me out, as eventually I was close enough to the end of the cliff that they could throw a lifebuoy at it".

"We gradually got her on to a level area to pull her in from," he added.

He said the woman had cuts from being banged against the rocks.

"When something like this happens, you don’t have a huge amount of time to reflect on it, you’re just trying to stay as practical as you can possibly be," he added, admitting he was "certainly a little bit shaken afterwards".

A bystander who contacted BBC News NI said they had "never seen such bravery".

"Once the situation was resolved, Daniel was quite shaken, but until everyone was safe he acted with such clarity and decisiveness," they added.

Mr McAleese said that his surfing background helped in the situation "without a doubt".

"Myself and my friends know every rock and current," he said.

"It was a scenario where the right person was there at the right time.

"It goes to show if you have any doubt, don’t go in."

Coleraine Coastguard Rescue Team said a team went to the scene after reports of people in difficulty in the sea.

"Passers by had called the Coastguard and then used council-provided throwlines and floats to reach two swimmers. One person entered the water to assist the swimmers ashore," the coastguard said.

The police said that when officers arrived, both women "had been taken out of the water by a man who assisted their safe recovery".

The coastguard said the swimmers, who had suffered minor injuries from the rocks, did not need hospital treatment.

An RNLI lifeboat trainer praised the actions of Mr McAleese.

"That particular location is very dangerous for a number of reasons," Mark Mitchell, from RNLI Portrush, told BBC Radio Foyle.

“One is rip currents and the other is water temperature.

“When you’re in the water you cool down very quickly, you can suffer from hypothermia after about half an hour.

“If you go into the water very unexpectedly you can also develop something called cold water shock.

“It causes your breathing rate to go up and that’s when someone is more likely to start taking water into the lungs and even actually sinking.”

He said if you find yourself struggling in the water to try and lie back “like a starfish”, ensuring your head is above the water and you remain calm for breathing control.

Mr Mitchell advised anyone who sees someone in danger along the coast to dial 999 Coastguard.