A diver has died after North Somerset teenager helped rescue him from the sea off
Dorset's Jurassic Coast.
The 58-year-old man from
Yeovil,
Somerset, was pulled from the sea off Portland just after 1pm on Sunday by the coastguard helicopter.
Hannah Bird, a sixth former and lifeguard from Burnham-on-Sea, was water-skiing training in Balaclava Bay, near Portland, when she responded to an SOS call on her boat's radio.
The 17-year-old was practicing for 2017 Water Skiing World Championships with her dad Steve on a race boat when they heard the call.
They drove to the diving boat, which was about five minutes away, and Hannah jumped aboard and started to perform CPR for the first time in a real-life emergency.
She said: "I was just about to get my water ski on when an emergency mayday call came through on the boat radio of an unconscious unbreathing diver in the bay.
"We quickly drove round in the boat, I jumped into the water and swam to their boat where they dragged me in.
"They all looked at me weird as I look much younger than I am but I assured them that I was qualified and could help.
"I started CPR until the air helicopter arrived, but trying to keep everyone in the boat calm and with a bunch of strangers, was very hard! We continued CPR for 25 minutes whilst trying to put the defib into him, cutting off his wetsuit and putting the helicopter harness onto the man."
The diver was then airlifted to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester for treatment but died a short time later.
Hannah's dad Steve, 47, who has been a coastguard for 16 years, said: "Hannah knows what to do but she hadn't done it before like that so she just had to get stuck in.
"At sea you just know you have to help each other out, he really didn't look in a good way.
"The whole team were really shaken up, there were about nine of them on the boat, I think including his wife.
"It was a traumatic experience for everyone involved."
A spokeswoman for Dorset Police said: "Dorset Police were called at 2.36pm on Sunday 1 May 2016 by Dorset County Hospital to reports that a diver had been rescued from the sea off Portland just after 1pm by the coastguard helicopter.
"A 58-year-old man from Yeovil was airlifted to Dorset County Hospital for treatment. Sadly he did a short time later.
"His next of kin have been informed and the coroner notified.
"An investigation is under way to assist HM Coroner."
