Firefighters save man from drowning in north Cork river

The man was assessed at the scene before removed to hospital for treatment after his rescue. File Picture: Clare Keogh

Firefighters saved a man from drowning in the river Blackwater in north Cork this evening.

The alarm was raised at around 7pm after reports that a man was seen entering the river about a mile east of Mallow town, at a location known as Lover’s Leap.

One unit of the Cork County Fire Service from Mallow rushed to the scene, along with members of the Mallow Search and Rescue Unit (MSAR), whose base is just a few hundred metres away.

The firefighters got to the scene first and committed up to three swift water rescue technicians to the river.

The firefighters got to the scene first and committed up to three swift water rescue technicians to the river.

They managed to grab the man, believed to be in his late 20s or early 30s, as he was being swept along a narrow stretch of the river and manoeuvre him safely back towards the river bank where members of MSAR were waiting to help recover him ashore.

He was assessed at the scene by the National Ambulance Service paramedics before he was removed by ambulance to hospital for treatment.