'We were lucky...it was very risky': Surfers rescue family caught in riptide on Cork beach 

TWO surfers have been commended for their bravery after rescuing members of a family from a riptide off a Cork beach on St Patrick’s Day.

A father, mother, and their two teenage children were described by a spokesperson for the Valencia Coast Guard as being “shaken” following the brief encounter with strong currents at Garrettstown Beach.

The spokesperson said that numerous 999 calls were placed from 2.30pm reporting swimmers in difficulty at the beach.

Following the distress calls, the Coast Guard 115 air rescue unit deployed from Shannon, along with RNLI units from Kinsale and Courtmacsherry, as well as the local Coast Guard team from The Old Head of Kinsale and Seven Heads unit.

“It had potential to be a big incident,” said the spokesperson. “The family were shaken, but no further medical assistance was needed.”

Two local surfers assisted some members of the family, bringing them ashore by 2.37pm.

One of the surfers, Carlos Amaya, owner of Pukana Surf Adventures in Garrettstown, told The Echo that he had just finished a surf lesson at the beach when he was alerted to the family in danger.

Half dressed, he ran with his surf board from his van and re-entered the water, making his way towards the family in need.

“I was just finished my lesson, and was taking off my wetsuit,” he said.

“It was halfway down my body when people came to me saying ‘go help’, so I grabbed my board and I ran.”

Accompanied by his friend Aaron O’Callaghan, a local surfer who was already in the water, Mr Amaya paddled a distance of 200m to the swimmers before bringing them ashore.

“I brought the son and daughter in,” he said.

“I was a little nervous when I saw them. The best thing was the dad was keeping them afloat.

“The three of them, the father and two children, were caught in the riptide. The mom was by the rocks, she was screaming and shouting for her kids.

“We were lucky,” he added. “It was very risky.”

While a small craft warning had been in place, Mr Amaya said that is it quite common for him to assist people in getting out of the water, as the currents in that particular area of Garrettstown beach can be very strong.

“In that part of the beach you see it all the time, it drags people quite far,” said Mr Amaya.

“People were running with ropes and buoys, they were very far from the beach.”

Mr Amaya said that this incident was one of the worst he had experienced, and that the family was very grateful to him following the rescue.

“The mom was so happy when the kids were out of the water, she gave me a big hug,” he said. “The dad came up to thank me as well.”

The two surfers were later thanked by emergency services, with the spokesperson for Valencia Coast Guard stating: “We have to commend their bravery.”