Today I tried to save a man.

And failed.

The other day I heard that a drowned man had been found at Sweet Lake. Two Russian swimmers with diving masks found him trapped under the water. A god awful tragedy.

Today was much like any other. Lazing on the beach, bit of a swim in the sea and in Sweet Lake. Sweet Lake backs onto a small beach. I had changed rooms earlier today to be closer, it is a very beautiful spot. At about 3pm I was sitting outside my new hut watching the beach when I noticed a small crowd about 50m away.

I went to investigate expecting to find a game going on or some other frivolity. However what I found was a half drowned man on a sunbed with scared and panicking friends and onlookers surrounding not knowing what to do. An ambulance had been called, however the nearest road is a 10 to 15 walk from Sweet Lake. Much longer if one is helping transport a seriously injured man.

The friends and onlookers were using the sunbed as a stretcher to carry the stricken man towards the area where the ambulance should be waiting. As they ran every now and then the group would stop and try some CPR and mouth to mouth. I could see the attempts were panicked and uncoordinated, and tried to remember my dim and distant first aid training. I pushed through, gave the man mouth to mouth and tried CPR. It was at this point I first suspected he had passed.

Never the less we all tried to carry the man along the rocky path towards the ambulance. I think my opinion was in the minority. I did not voice it. The situation was now getting rather panicked. I will never forget the look on the face of the man's close friend. One of panic, fear, disbelief and cold realization. Tears trying to break through but still trying to hold it in so he could do the best for his friend. As we ran the opportunity for me to give CPR and mouth to mouth diminished. Others were trying just as hard. I thought what I could do. At that time I was just running along with the crowd showing concern but not really helping. So I ran ahead to where I thought the ambulance would be. I figured that I could grab a trained paramedic and take him to where he was needed, thus cutting down medical response time.

This is where I was shocked. The ambulance crew were not in the slightest bit interested. All five of them stood there like pointless statues. After explaining that the casualty was being carried along the beach, the crew refused to budge. He is coming here they voiced. I pointed at one and said sternly "First aid. Come". One man did. Very reluctantly. He slowly and impotently put on some rubber gloves and sauntered behind me. I called at him to run and he trotted for about 5 meters before sauntering again By this stage the group had made it to the main beach near to the ambulance. I waved at him to run, pointing at the tragedy. He did not care, sauntered up, looked at the man, tried rather half hearted ineffective CPR before declaring the man dead.

His indifference did not end there. When the man was finally brought to the ambulance, the crew did not want to take him. As he was dead it was a police matter as far as they were concerned. A very short and passionate argument broke out between the bereaved and the ambulance crew. They reluctantly decided to take him. Only there was another problem, someone had parked their car too close to the back door of the ambulance. Why one of the crew did not prevent this I can not begin to imagine. This resulted in an inability for the tired friends (not the ambulance crew, of course) to place the body into the back of the ambulance. After yet more faffing and heart break for those close to the deceased they managed to unceremoniously dump the body over the bonnet of the parked car and into the ambulance. I do not want to imagine what that ride must have been like for those close to him, trapped on the back of that ambulance with the trained imbeciles that refused to lift a finger.

Later that day I swam in Sweet Lake to try and work out how he had drowned. The lake is small, calm and shallow. On average chest deep on me, with only limited areas out of my depth. The poor fellow was smaller than me, about 5'8". People line one side of the lake on sun loungers, with the sea behind them. Getting to him by even a below average swimmer would take seconds, an minute at the most. When giving mouth to mouth I could smell alcohol on him. I can only imagine and assume that he went out, with his friends, into the lake. for a laugh and a splash about. I doubt very much he could swim. Whilst in the lake he must have been startled by something, may be something he saw in the water or something he trod on. Something that felt unfamiliar, perhaps a rock, weed or the mud. At this point he panicked, fell back into the water and took a lung full of water. I guess his friends must have first thought he was playing the fool until realizing that he was in distress.

A very sad waste and I can only feel deep sympathy for his friend who looked so distressed as we all tried our best to get him to help, help that ultimately did not contain the slightest bit of sympathy, use or dignity.