Durdle Door: Tombstone rescuer 'feared he would drown'

A paddleboarder who retrieved a stricken man who had jumped 70ft (21m) into the sea said he thought he was going to drown in the rescue.

Mike Wiley, 31, found the man unconscious on the seabed after he had tombstoned from Durdle Door arch in Dorset on Saturday.

He described "swimming through the pain" as he hauled the man back to the surface.

The beach later had to be cleared to allow air ambulances to land.

Thousands of people flocked to Durdle Door Beach on the Jurassic Coast on Saturday following the easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Mr Wiley, from Southampton, said he had been paddleboarding at the beauty spot when he saw three men jump from the arch over the course of an hour.

He described frantic attempts by him and other swimmers to find a fourth man who failed to resurface after he leapt into the sea.

"He hit the water so hard he didn't even come up to the surface, he went straight down," Mr Wiley said.

"I could see a white body on the seafloor, but it was so deep none of us could get to him. Everyone was in a state of panic."

He said it took five attempts to reach the victim.

"When I got to him he was just laid on some seaweed and I grabbed his hand and kept swimming to the surface.

"I thought I was going to let go of him as I didn't think I'd make it to the surface myself. I'd exhaled all the air in my lungs.

"I swum through the pain and the fact I thought I was going to drown - dragging a body through the water was hard."

Four "incredible ladies" on the beach then performed CPR to get the man breathing again before medics arrived and he was flown to hospital.

"I honestly thought he wasn't going to make it - he was down there for about four minutes," Mr Wiley said.

"I'm replaying it over in my head. I can't explain how hard it was."

Mr Wiley said the man had no protective clothing.

"People don't know their limitations, they think the water is soft. When you are jumping from that height it's incredibly dangerous. The cold water shock alone will take the breath out of your lungs."

In total three jumpers were seriously hurt and taken to hospital.

While helicopters landed on the beach, thousands of people had to crowd together, breaking social distancing rules.

A Public Health Dorset spokesperson said: "People who are or were unable to social distance effectively are advised to self-isolate if they have symptoms of COVID-19 and arrange a test through the online booking system.

"It is important that good hygiene measures are followed with frequent hand washing.

"Where social distancing isn't possible people should wear face coverings especially where they will come into contact with people they do not normally meet."

Despite the coastguard and police warning people not to leap from the landmark on Saturday, officers said others "still saw fit" to attempt it on Sunday.

Roads around the beauty spot, which is part of the privately owned Lulworth Estate, were closed but hundreds of people still travelled to the area, police said.

In a statement, the estate's owner, James Weld, insisted opening the car parks "did not attract visitors".

"These were opening to relieve the pressure on the local road network and the local community, although the publicity surrounding the opening of the car parks undoubtedly added to the visitor numbers," he said.

"It is clear that the restriction of travel should have been limited to local journeys only which would not have resulted in the huge pressures suddenly being foisted on sites such as Durdle Door."

He said staff were "physically and legally" unable to prevent people from accessing the coast.

The estate re-opened its Durdle Door car park on 16 May after restrictions were eased, earlier than other car parks along the coast owned by the National Trust and Dorset Council.

Conservative South Dorset MP Richard Drax said he would be discussing issues from the weekend with the council, police and Mr Weld.

"Personal responsibility is what people are meant to be adopting. Sadly they were not adopting [that]," he added.