Rip victim thanks the brave man who saved him

Carl Lue (left) had the chance to thank David Gorrie who saved him from a rip on Saturday, when the pair were reunited last night. Photo / Andrew Warner

A man saved from a rip on Saturday was reunited with his rescuer last night, happy to get the chance to thank the stranger for his lifesaving actions.

Carl Lue was swept out by a strong current while swimming at Mount Maunganui at the weekend, near Hart St, when David Gorrie swam to his rescue.

The Mount Maunganui local was enjoying an afternoon on the beach with his partner and their children when Mr Lue got into trouble.

Mr Gorrie had felt the force of the rip himself when he was swimming about half an hour earlier so was watching his partner's son Lucas closely while he swam.

Lucas heard cries from Mr Lue nearby, who had been dragged out over his head and had started swallowing water.

Lucas raised the alarm and Mr Gorrie ran straight for the water.

"I just ran in and swam out to him ... I knew he'd been in the water for a while already so he was pretty tired."

Mr Gorrie turned Mr Lue around to face the oncoming waves so he could prepare for the next set approaching him, before heading to shore.

"I started pushing him, I'd duck under the water and push off the ground but then he got even more tired so I had to pull him.

"He was so tired he couldn't really put his legs down so I had to drag him quite a way."

Both men were relieved to reach the shore.

"He was okay, he was just in a bit of shock."

Mr Gorrie said the reality of the situation did not hit him until later.

"I didn't really realise how bad it was until after.

"The problem is it looked fine and even felt okay. You were fine to about 20 metres and another 5m and you were pulled out 20m in 30 to 40 seconds."

Mr Gorrie had grown up in Mount Maunganui, done surf club when he was younger and had spent a lot of time at the beach and in the water.

He thought the local conditions could be challenging for people new to the area and encouraged them to swim in patrolled areas.

Mr Lue said it was great to meet Mr Gorrie again.

"We had a good talk and I said 'thank you very much'.

"We will meet later so someday we can have a drink."