A dog walker tried to save a man who got into difficulty in the water at New Brighton.
Emergency services rushed to Marine Parade shortly before 2pm yesterday after concerns were raised about the safety of a person in the water. The man, who was in his 50s, was rescued before being taken to Arrowe Park Hospital hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Matty Bowman, 56, from Wallasey, was walking his dog close to the scene when he heard people calling for help. He told the ECHO : “I was out walking my dog and saw people in the distance who were looking distressed and there was a lot of noise.
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"Then people started to wave their hands up and down and I thought ‘hello this doesn’t look good’. I started to run and realised there was a man in the water.
"I clipped my dog to the railings and grabbed a life buoy. With the assistance of some people holding the rope, I swam into the water.
"We managed to use the life buoy to drag the gentleman out and began giving him CPR, and then the lads from the lifeboat rocked up.”
It is thought the man went into the water after his grandchildren got into difficulty, and helped to get the children to safety before he himself got caught up in the "very rough" conditions.
A spokesperson for Merseyside Police said: "We can confirm that emergency services were in New Brighton following an incident yesterday afternoon, Tuesday August 16. At around 1.55pm, coastguard, ambulance, police officers and the RNLI were called to Marine Parade to reports for the concern for the safety of a man in the water.
"The man, in his 50s, was taken to hospital where he was sadly pronounced deceased. His next of kin have been informed and are being supported while enquiries are carried out. "
Videos shared with the ECHO show a helicopter landing at the scene. HM Coastguard sent rescue teams from Crosby and Wirral, along with lifeboats from New Brighton. Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service was also in attendance.
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