Woman dragged from strong tide (From Barry And District News)

Woman dragged from strong tide

A BARRY man has been hailed a hero for swimming through strong currents to rescue a woman in difficulty.

Vale of Glamorgan Seaside Officer, Peter Andrews, dived into the town's swirling sea after spotting an object in the water.

He told the News: "I was standing on the edge of the pier when I looked out to sea. "I said to two fisherman who were nearby, that something was not right, as I could see this object bobbing up and down in the water."

Mr Andrews, from Barry, then went to fetch his binoculars, and saw that there was a person wading out to sea, but he could not tell whether the individual was female or male.

He said: "I ran down the pier, got into my car, and drove down to the Yacht Club, and got out by the lifeboat slipway."

It was at this point that Peter got a clearer view, and saw that it was a woman in difficulty. He immediately called the emergency services.

The incident happened about 200 metres from Penarth Pier, towards the direction of Lavernock.

Peter has undertaken lifeguard training, and has been a swimmer for years, but even he described the sea as 'treacherous'.

He ran into the water wearing his work uniform, which consisted of blue trousers and matching blue T-shirt. When he eventually reached the woman in trouble, the water was up to his chin, and the tide was going out.

Peter said: "When I reached her, she was floating on her back with her eyes shut."

The woman was still breathing, and so he gripped on to her jacket at the shoulder with one hand and supported her with the other while pulling her back to shore.

He stated: "The tide was just turning - five more minutes and I would have been dragged in too."

Peter said: "It was not easy as the tide was going out and the woman was very confused. She started talking, but her eyes were closed all the time, as if she wanted to go to sleep."

The victim was kept warm with blankets once back on dry land, and paramedics arrived to examine her.

Peter added: "I would like to know how she is now."

He explained that last Thursday there had been a five knot tide and, although it was a nice day, the sea was quite rough.

The woman is believed to have been aged between 55-65 years, with grey short hair, about 5 ft 2 in tall, and wearing a grey jacket, skirt and black shoes.

South Wales Police confirmed that a female from the Leckwith Road area, had got into difficulty in the water, but was conscious when rescued and taken to hospital.