A FAMILY day out turned to tragedy when a dad was swept into the North Sea by a “freak wave”.
A police officer and two members of the public jumped into the fierce surf and battled to pull the man ashore after the accident at Stonehaven.
But the man, who had been in the water for more than half an hour, died later in hospital.
Police named the victim last night as 43-year-old Peter Trudgill, a father from Lyne of Skene, near Westhill, who was married to Anne-Marie.
It is understood Mr Trudgill, a paramedic, was trying to take photographs of the waves near Stonehaven harbour when he was swept into the water about 3pm on Saturday. His family could only watch in horror as he was dragged out to sea.
It was only when the waves brought him closer to shore that he was spotted and lifted out of the water by a policeman, who is understood to be a traffic officer from Portlethen, and two other men.
Gavin Park, 36, lives in Stonehaven and had been out for a meal at the Ship Inn at the harbour before he walked to the beachfront, where police officers and ambulance crews had been called to the scene.
A bystander told him a search was being carried out for a man who it was thought had drowned.
Mr Park, a project supervisor for engineering company Oteac at Maryculter, spotted someone in the water at the same time as the police officer.
The officer shouted for everyone to stay back and went into the water towards the man.
Mr Park said: “The waves were hitting the policeman’s body and I thought there was no way that he was going to manage to bring the man in from the water on his own.
“It was a split-second thing. Instinct just took over and I went to help.
“I was conscious of the fact he had already been swept out to sea once and we might not get the chance again to bring him out of the water.
“I tried to get hold of the man’s arms and my feet got dragged out from beneath me. When I got up, I took the man’s legs while the policeman and the other man took his arms.”
Mr Park said chest compressions were started immediately on the man, who was airlifted by the Rescue Bond 1 helicopter to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. He died in the early hours of yesterday. The RNLI lifeboat based at Stonehaven was launched, while the Stonehaven Coastguard Rescue Team was also scrambled to the scene at the breakwater near the Tolbooth car park.
Mr Park said: “It seems that they were just out for a family walk and a freak wave has swept him into the sea.”
Police Inspector Inness Coull said: “Members of the emergency services faced treacherous conditions and the male had been in the water for some time before he was removed by a police officer and members of the public. I would like to thank the members of the public for their assistance.”
Aberdeen Coastguard watch manager Kevin Brown said: “The people who pulled him from the sea to the shore were incredibly brave given the rough conditions on the breakwater in Stonehaven.”
As with all sudden deaths, a report will be sent to the procurator fiscal.
Comment, Page 32