Cyclist thought he would die after Portsoy bridge plunge

A junior doctor has spoken about his "miracle" rescue after he plunged 30ft (9m) over a bridge and into a river during a long-distance cycle ride.

Duncan Brown, 34, had been on a 300km (186 mile) organised event but after braking as he approached a sharp bend onto a bridge near Portsoy, he skidded on the road.

He hit the bridge and was thrown over the parapet, sliding into the water.

Duncan said it was a miracle his fall was seen by an RAF nursing officer.

He had been about 100km (62 miles) into the event, which began in Nairn last Saturday, when he approached the bridge over the Burn of Boyne on a decline.

"I realised there was a sharp, right-hand bend over the bridge and applied the brakes," he said, "I think the back wheel skidded on some grease and water on the road and I hit the wall.

"The next thing I remember was being catapulted over the parapet of the bridge. I hit the foliage of a tree and felt a smack and intense pain in my leg. I slipped 30ft down an embankment into the river.

"I remember being submerged and coming back out. It's a miracle I wasn't knocked out. I found myself at the edge of the river and managed to pull myself to the edge of the embankment."

After watching his bike disappearing down the river, Duncan, from Inverness, looked up at the bridge above.

"I thought I was going to die," he said. "There had been no-one else around to see me. I thought that was it."

As a junior doctor working in A&E at Raigmore Hospital, he knew it was serious when someone cannot move.

"I was really dazed and felt like I was about to pass out," he said. "My phone was soaked from the river and there was no signal there anyway. Then I heard a woman shouting from the bridge, asking if I was ok."

Jenelle Kerr, an RAF nursing officer for 20 years, had just gone into her garden when she heard the bike braking and saw a flash of red going over the bridge.

"I just heard a 'click, click, click' and saw him from the corner of my eye as he went over the top of the bridge," the 51-year-old said.

"I just jumped up, ran across the road, looked down and saw he was conscious," she added. "I realised I had to get down there. There was no track so I had to push my way through the foliage and slide down the steep embankment.

"I was on autopilot. I've got 20 years training for this type of stuff. I was just in the right place at the right time."

Duncan added: "A few minutes before or after and she wouldn't have been there. I'm convinced it was a miracle - the fact that she had medical training too.

"She stabilised me so I didn't float away then realised I was going into shock so lay me down."

Jenelle managed to call the emergency services and Duncan was eventually taken downstream on a raft before being carried up the embankment and airlifted to Raigmore Hospital.

"There were about 40-50 personnel involved in getting me out," he said. "I was just coming to the end of my A&E placement at Raigmore - it wasn't quite the end I'd imagined being taken in there. You never expect anything like this to happen to you."

Duncan's wife Lizzie and six-week-old daughter Emily were at home when Lizzie learned what had happened.

"She had to watch the helicopter flying me over the house to the hospital," he said.

Duncan, who hopes to become a GP in the Highlands, said he could not thank the emergency services enough. "I am indebted to them all," he said, "and to the lady who helped me. She saved my life and has my immense gratitude."

Jenelle even managed to recover his bike from the river.

Incredibly, Duncan did not break any bones or suffer any head or neck injuries. He has a soft tissue injury to his hip and is now on crutches with months of rehabilitation ahead.

Jenelle said Duncan did not have more serious injuries as he was not expecting to fall so his body did not tense up.

"I live to tell the tale," he said.