Brianna Hurst shares moment she rescued two men drowning at Victorian beach

[Pelican Press 0]

Brianna Hurst shares moment she rescued two men drowning at Victorian beach

The woman who dragged three men to shore when they got into trouble in waters off Victoria’s southwest coast says she doesn’t consider herself a hero.

Brianna Hurst raced into the water at Marengo Beach near Apollo Bay when a friend of the swimmers swam to shore and called for help at 1.15pm on Sunday.

Brianna Hurst says she isn’t a hero. 9 News Credit: Channel 9

As the 33-year-old pulled the unconscious men to shore one by one, others on the beach began CPR as they waited for emergency services to arrive.

Despite the desperate rescue efforts, a 26-year-old male was declared ***** at the scene.

A 23-year-old and a 24-year-old remain in hospital.

Speaking to the media on Monday, Ms Hurst said jumping into the water to rescue the men was instinctive, and as soon as she realised what was happening, she ran straight into the water.

“I kind of just jumped into action without really thinking about what I was doing, I guess on reflection I feel like I did everything I could have done to help them,” Ms Hurst said.

“It feels really good that I was able to help them out. Happy that I was there at the time, probably just luck that I felt confident in the water and that wasn’t a barrier to helping them.”

Marengo Beach near Apollo Bay, where one person drowned and two were rescued. Brad Fleet Credit: News Corp Australia

Lifesaving Victoria executive adviser Paul Shannon said the state had recorded 27 drowning deaths since December 1 and Victorians must understand their swimming capabilities before heading into the water.

“People aren’t respecting the ocean and mother nature as much as they should. People aren’t adhering to messages, they’re not reading signs,” he said.

“They’re not arming themselves with the knowledge to keep themselves safe at the beach each day.”

Mr Shannon said the rising ****** toll was “unacceptable” and Victorians must stop and think about the conditions they were exposing themselves to when entering the water.

Lifesaving Victoria executive adviser Paul Shannon said Victorians must be aware of their swimming capabilities before entering the water. Brad Fleet Credit: News Corp Australia

“If you put (the ****** toll) in another context and think of loading a 40-seater bus up, which we’ve just about filled, and driving it off St Kilda Pier. That’s the number of people who have drowned,” he said.

“It’s just not acceptable, but because it’s a dispersed emergency that happens sporadically through the year, it doesn’t tend to get that recognition.

“People need to take some responsibility for themselves and arm themselves with the risk mitigation to go out and enjoy a great day at the beach.”

Victoria has had 39 drowning deaths within the last financial year.

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