He jumped into the Vistula River to save a teenager. An extraordinary action by a policeman

In moments like these, there is no time to delay. In Toruń, a teenage girl drowned in the Vistula River. The strong current and cold water did not give her much chance of survival. – He swam to the woman who was drowning, who kept disappearing under the water surface – reports aspirant Dominika Bocian from the Municipal Police Headquarters in Toruń.

The situation was dramatic. At any moment, the drowning woman could not resurface. Fortunately, there was someone nearby who decided to act just in time.

– I decided to become a policeman and I want to help people – says Łukasz Grabowski, a senior trainee from the Municipal Police Headquarters in Toruń. Even for a moment, the Toruń policeman wondered not whether, but how to help. – I had a short time to think about how to do it, to do it safely, above all, because, as I mentioned, I am the father of three children and my safety was also taken into account – Grabowski admits.

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He thought that before jumping into the water he would take off his police blouse and take a lifebuoy with him. He couldn't have made better decisions – say experienced water rescuers. – We teach fully clothed swimming during our courses. Swimming fully clothed is very difficult, if you haven't practiced it and don't know how to do it properly, your clothes are like an additional anchor for us – says Jacek Kleczaj from the Szczecin Volunteer Water Rescue Service.

The lifebuoy, although it made it difficult to swim to the drowning person, could have helped if the policeman had problems keeping the injured person on the surface of the water. – He found a means that allowed him to be secured, but at the same time provided him with some safety in contact with the injured person – says Kleczaj. Fortunately, the policeman was not alone. He was secured from the shore by other officers, and an employee of the marina of the Academic Sports Association came to his aid in a boat. – He helped the policeman and the rescued woman get to the shore – says Bocian.

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The action ended happily for everyone, although there were many threats. – Without a doubt, hypothermia. Without a doubt, the current was quite fast, in this video you can see that this current is fast, so it was a fight not only with the distance, but also with the current, at one point he was swimming against the current and it required a really big effort from him – says Kleczaj. – The adrenaline level was so high that I actually felt the temperature of the water only at home in the evening, I was cold – admits Grabowski. However, the older aspirant did not even think about being fired or on leave. The next day he was at work.