A man was airlifted to hospital yesterday evening after being dragged out of the waters of a north-east harbour by a heroic teenager.
Police, ambulance, coastguard and lifeboat teams were called to Macduff harbour at around 5pm, following reports of an individual plunging into the water.
All roads leading into the area were blocked off while the emergency services attended the scene.
Shannon Wilson, 13, said she and her boyfriend had been sitting on the opposite side of the bay with some friends when they spotted the man go into the water.
The Banff Academy pupil added they watched the man swim around, but after a while he appeared to be having breathing difficulties and stopped moving.
Concerned for the individual’s safety, Shannon revealed her 15-year-old boyfriend bravely leapt into the chilly waters to see if he was all right.
When the teenager noticed the man was floating face down, his friends threw in a life ring and he pulled him onto dry land.
Shannon said: “He was swimming across the harbour, but when he was about three quarters of the way across, we could see he was struggling for breath, so my boyfriend went in.
“We got the life ring and gave that to my boyfriend, and he used it to get the man out of the water.
“I’m really very proud of him. It was a good thing to do.”
The man was treated by paramedics at the scene before being airlifted to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
Last night, a police spokesman was unable to reveal the extent of the man’s injuries.
Mike Rawlins, a spokesman for the Macduff RNLI lifeboat team said: “We were called by the coastguard to assist at around 5.02pm.
“By the time we arrived, the individual was already out of the water and was being cared for by members of the Scottish Ambulance Service.
“He was transported to ARI by the Inverness coastguard helicopter.”
One woman, who lives close to Macduff harbour, added: “We pray for a full recovery and our thoughts and prayers are with the family. The emergency services were out very fast.
“When you hear the coastguard helicopter out here, everyone knows something has happened.”
