Heroes honoured after six saved at horror beach
Volunteer lifeguards tell of battling pounding waves to rescue group. By Tarannum Shaikh.
TWOlifeguards’ decision to stay behind after their shift finished ended with them saving the lives of six men who came close to drowning at a notoriously dangerous beach.
Lifeguards Dean Maddaford and Shane Dwyer were last night honoured for their efforts at the Surf Life Saving Awards in Wellington, after their heroic rescue at Bethells Beach on Auckland’s west coast in February.
Maddaford, who was involved in the search party when Warriors player Sonny Fai disappeared in 2009, said it was the most extreme rescue he had been involved in because of the difficult conditions, and number of people involved.
The pair, both volunteer lifeguards, were off-duty when they spotted a group of people struggling in the water.
‘‘We had packed up the patrol for the day and often we stay down there a little bit longer just to keep an eye on people,’’ Maddaford said.
Dwyer said they sensed something was coming in the stormy rough conditions.
‘‘It was a horrible, horrible day at the beach. So we were kind of aware something would happen.’’
A group of six men, aged 18-25, was still in the water when things quickly took a turn for the worse.
‘‘They were swimming up to their waist and within seconds they started flailing around with their arms in the air,’’ Maddaford said. ‘‘The rip was so fast that it took them probably about 200-300 metres off shore.’’
What followed was a rescue against the odds.
‘‘There was really no way they could have swum back to the shore,’’ Dwyer said.
Maddaford and Dwyer launched an inflatable rescue boat and headed out toward the swimmers who were being ‘‘pounded by waves that were three to four metres high’’.
‘‘The first guy we got to was flailing around and went under the boat a couple of times. We were just trying to get a hold of him,’’ Maddaford says. ‘‘As we got him into the boat, we were hit by a wave, went on top of the wave and went flying back down.’’
Assisted by James Newland and Robin Hammond, the pair picked up all six men.
Both men are grateful for being recognised for their efforts but say they are simply relieved to have been there at the right time.
‘‘To be honest, if we hadn’t been there, I would say at least four of them would have drowned,’’ Dwyer said.
‘ It was a horrible, horrible day at the beach. So we were kind of aware something would happen.’ SHANE DWYER