Pulled out of the Danube

Automatically saved draft

(Bild: Polizei OÖ)

Exhausted, a swimmer (28) clung to the boat of a rower (75) in the Danube in Linz. Three water police officers rescued the young Pole with the help of a buoyancy aid. Explosive: he had a blood alcohol level of 3.6.

On Monday, the LVA OÖ "Lentia" boat was on patrol duty on the Danube in the city of Linz. Above the Nibelungen Bridge, a swimmer had to hold on to a rowing boat. The policewoman and the two water police officers went towards the rower, who was trying to reach the bank near the Lentos with his boat.

The rower was in danger
Due to his inability to maneuver, the 75-year-old rower from Linz, together with the swimmer clinging to the bow, was in danger of crashing into the passenger ships moored there or the bridge piers located downstream. The 28-year-old swimmer from Poland, who was holding on to the rowing boat, was thrown the buoyancy aid and pulled to the stern of the boat with the buoyancy aid, where he could be brought on board via the recovery platform.

Swimmer was heavily "in the oil"
He stated that he went into the water at the Steinmetzplatzl beach in Linz-Urfahr and wanted to swim across the Danube. However, he was unable to do so as he had lost his strength. A breathalyzer test carried out on the swimmer resulted in a positive reading, 3.6 per mille to be precise! The 28-year-old was handed over to the Samaritans and the emergency doctor, who found no injuries.