Woman saved from drowning after river plunge from yacht

A SECURITY guard helped save a woman sailor's life as she fell off a luxury motor yacht and plunged into the River Dart at Kingswear.

The woman was boarding the 70ft boat in windy weather when the vessel moved, leaving her with one foot on the deck and the other on the pontoon at Kingswear marina.

As the large boat continued to move away from Darthaven Marina the woman fell, but luckily the security guard, who had offered to carry her shopping, was there to help her husband.

The two men reached down and grabbed her and stopped her being swept away. The woman was taken to Torbay Hospital for treatment.

The incident happened at around 5.20pm on Friday. Darthaven dockmaster Jamie Getty said: "If the security man had not been with them she would probably have drowned."

The woman and her husband had been shopping in Dartmouth before catching the ferry to Kingswear to return to the motor yacht which belongs to friends.

The security guard had offered to carry her shopping for her as the couple made their way to the pontoon where the yacht was moored. Mr Getty said: "He was helping her with her shopping. The wind was blowing and the boat was moving."

As the two hung on to the desperate woman the guard alerted coastguards, but the two were eventually able to haul her on to the pontoon before help arrived.

Police, ambulance, Berry Head Coastguard and the Dart inshore lifeboat were all alerted but the lifeboat was stood down before it was launched.

Mr Getty believed the couple had cut short their visit and gone home the next day.