‘I FELT I WAS DYING’
A JETSKIER plucked from the water by a helicopter crew after being swept out to sea has praised the rescuer who saved his life.
Liam Gravatt, 21, was winched to safety by the Westpac Lifesaver Helicopter after becoming caught in a rip off South Stradbroke Island.
Mr Gravatt inhaled water and said he thought he was “dying” before help arrived.
“Jared ... old mate who picked me up ... he’s a top bloke,” Mr Gravatt said of Westpac crewman Jared Clark who performed the rescue.
Mr Gravatt had been a passenger on a jet ski driven by mate Joel Howell, 22. The pair jumped from their craft to avoid being smashed by strong swell at about 2.30pm.
Mr Howell, who was towed to shore by a Surf Life Saving Queensland jet ski crew member, told the Gold Coast Bulletin his friend inhaled water multiple times as he struggled against the rip about 100m offshore.
“He said ‘I feel like I’m dying’,” Mr Howell.
“I knew the helicopter was overhead and lifesavers were coming so I just said ‘mate hang on to me’ but he went under a couple more times. “I just tried to keep him up.” Mr Howell also thanked the rescuers.
“They’re legends. It was pretty good timing, they were coming overhead and they saw us down there – they saved our skin,” he said.
“It could have been a lot worse, Liam could have kept taking in water.
“His missus is probably going to have me for this but I guess I’ll be able to get out on the water again.”
Mr Howell said the pair were wearing life jackets.
“I was happy to sit there and let the rip do its thing but every wave he’d be further and further away from me,” Mr Howell said.
“We had life jackets on out there, you’ve just got to chill out.”
Rescue crewman Mr Clark said Mr Howell was holding Mr Gravatt out of the water as he approached from the air.
I KNEW THE HELICOPTER WAS OVERHEAD AND LIFESAVERS WERE COMING SO I JUST SAID ‘MATE HANG ON TO ME’ BUT HE WENT UNDER A COUPLE MORE TIMES. I JUST TRIED TO KEEP HIM UP. JOEL HOWELL
“They were both caught in a rip so we winched them out and brought them to the beach,” he said. “The ski went to shore and they got caught in the rip, it was a really bad rip, the first gentleman (Liam) was quite crook.
“He panicked in the rip which he shouldn’t have and swallowed a lot of water.”
Mr Gravatt was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital for observation and released last night.