Hero fireman saves priest

A hero fireman has saved the life of a priest who almost drowned in a swimming pool on the Costa Del Sol.

William Dunne, who works for Cork City Fire Brigade, managed to resuscitate the priest last Friday in Benalmadena.

It is understood the priest had attended a wedding ceremony the previous day in the Inmaculada Concepcion Church when Norma Ni Mhisteal — daughter of former presidential candidate Gay Mitchell — tied the knot with Andy Perry.

However, things took a dramatic twist when the priest almost drowned, only for William, from Cobh, to come to his aid once a hotel lifeguard pulled him from the water.

William did not want to comment on his heroics.

However, a spokesman for Sunset Beach Club, where the incident took place, praised his intervention in the “dual effort” to resuscitate the stricken priest.

He said the hotel complex has two pools joined by a bridge. The lifeguard was checking on a situation involving a child in one pool when he looked around to discover the priest floating in the water in the other pool.

“A child had fallen and lost an arm band and [the lifeguard] looked back and noticed this priest was under water,” said the spokesman. “The lifeguard pulled him out and called at the cleaning ladies nearby to call an ambulance. When he turned around, the fireman was giving CPR. It was a dual effort. The fireman had started giving CPR and the lifeguard was holding his head and clearing his mouth.”

It is understood it took 20 chest compressions before the priest came around.

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