Hero paramedic pulls man from freezing river
A Derry paramedic has been hailed a hero after plunging into a freezing cold River Foyle to rescue a man.
Father-of-two Michael McConnell, from Sevenoaks, and his ambulance crew colleagues were returning from an early morning call on January 2 when they saw a crowd gathered beside the river close to Craigavon Bridge.
The crew initially thought it was a road crash, but then realised that a man was in the water. The PSNI, who were in attendance, had lowered a lifebelt to which the man was clinging but he was unable to put over his head.
Quick as a flash, Michael climbed down a ladder, entered the freezing water and guided the man to safety up the ladder. He was then transported to Altnagelvin Hospital.
Remarkably, after a change of clothes, Michael returned to his duties for the rest of the shift.
Yesterday he was remaining modest about his heroics. “It was just one of those things that had to be done,” he said. “You do it, get on with it and go on to the next call and just hope that you do the right thing again.”
He added: “As a member of the Ambulance Service, day in and day out you are faced with different situations. No two days are ever the same and you have to adapt quickly to the situation in hand.”
Michael says his family, wife Donna and two boys, couldn’t be prouder. He said: “They think I’m the bee’s knees.”
Liam McIvor, Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, praised the actions and modesty of the crew involved.
He said: “NIAS staff often find themselves in situations where they must consider putting the needs of a patient before their own safety. This was one such instance. The crew involved did what they felt needed to be done. The only information they felt necessary to pass on to their colleagues in Ambulance Control was that they had come across an incident, had dealt with it and needed time for a change of clothes.
Beyond call of duty
“The full sequence of events has only been made known by sources external to NIAS. I fully commend the paramedic for his actions which reflect well on him as an individual and would be typical of many involved in the ambulance and other emergency services who often go beyond the call of duty in their desire to serve the communities in which they live.”
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Derry
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 29 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 14 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: East
