Retro Nostalgia 1971: Cafe owner saves drowning sailor

John Lemetti (71) went for a quiet sail on Loch Lomond and became the hero of a rescue drama.
By The Newsroom
Published 18th Aug 2018, 14:39 BST
Updated 18th Aug 2018, 15:54 BST

This week the well-known Camelon cafe owner spoke about how he hauled a drowning man to safety as scores of holidaymakers looked on. And he told of his desperate ten-minute battle to bring the man back to life.

Mr Lemetti, of Dorrator Road, was with his son, Luigi, and daughter-in-law, Ann-Marie, on a visit to Balloch on the shores of the loch.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

They joined a pleasure boat cruise and were more than a mile out when the drama began.

Said Mr Lemetti: ‘‘I was just enjoying the scenery when I spotted a hand sticking up from the water then I saw the man bobbing up and down and calling for help.

‘‘I told the captain to sail towards the spot and we were there in minutes. The drowning man was one of three men out in a small boat.

‘‘His friends were panicking and could do little to help him so I jumped from the pleasure boat into theirs and pulled the man aboard.’’

Calum Bromley (25) of Balloch was taken to Vale of Leven Hospital and later 
released.