Asda employee saves man from drowning in river

A retail worker has been praised for his "heroic actions" after he saved a person who had fallen into the River Medway.

Dan Fiveash, who works for Asda Living in Maidstone, was on his break when he heard somebody shouting from the river.

The 31-year-old immediately raced to the scene and spotted a man in the river clutching the reeds.

"Without thinking, I just grabbed the life ring and threw it to him," he said.

"We'd had a lot of rainfall in the days prior to the incident, so the banks had burst and the water levels seemed to be a lot higher than usual."

Mr Fiveash said he then held onto the life ring while calling 999.

"The man was quite calm and I kept reassuring him until the emergency services turned up," he said.

"It was cold and dark, and I didn't know how much longer we could hold on for. So my main focus was to hold on and keep talking to him."

Two fire engines and a water safety unit arrived within minutes, along with Kent Police and ambulance crews, who helped bring a 63-year-old man to safety.

Maidstone Fire Station's crew manager, David Edwards, said Mr Fiveash "made the right call".

"His quick thinking and heroic actions in using the nearby life ring meant that the fire service was able to bring the man to safety quickly and efficiently," they said.

After the incident, Mr Fiveash said he simply went back to work the rest of his shift.

"It could so easily have been a different story. I kept questioning myself whether I did everything right and if I could have done more.

"People said I should feel proud. But for me, it was a natural thing to do."

Asda store manager, Paul Wiedeholz, said: "We think it's terrific to be on break and to do this.

"We think Dan is a hero."

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