Two teenagers were rock jumping off the cliff at a popular fishing spot known as the ‘Jew-Hole’ when one got into considerable difficulty, having been washed up and dragged around on the rocks.

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Police were alerted and a distraught crowd gathered pensively watching from above as the hapless swimmer tried to reach safety to no avail.

Chris Cahill, who works seasonally as a river-guide, met Ben Wighton getting out of the surf with his board at the boat ramp, and the pair sprung into action.

“My initial response was to sprint over the headland and get to the fellow as fast as I could but had to convince the police at the scene that I knew what I was doing,” said Ben.

Joined by another experienced surfer Eli Anderson, they managed to get the exhausted young man, on the verge of drowning, out of immediate danger in the turbulent water at the cliff face.

They gathered around him to keep him afloat, fighting against the current and surge of the ocean away from the rocks towards the beach.

Meanwhile lifeguards had responded by jet ski from Coffs Harbour Surf Club and arrived to bring the rescue to a satisfying conclusion.

“The whole thing triggered me,” Ben said.

“I was fairly shaken up for a few days but the fact that someone’s life was saved made the whole experience way more satisfying and I appreciated the team effort with Chris and Eli.”

Ben was also one of the first responders at the scene of the fatal shark attack on the back beach of Look at Me Now Headland on 5 September 2021.

By Kim SATCHELL