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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Ryan Carroll

Heart-stopping moment daredevil caught swimming down River Don after bursting its banks in flood

This is the heart-stopping moment when a daredevil was caught swimming down the River Don after it burst its banks this morning.

The swimmer, who was wearing a wetsuit, was captured traveling down the river in Aberdeen on Saturday November 19. The incident happened near the Tesco Extra in Danestone, Bridge of Don, and left passers-by completely stunned.

In the clip, the man can be seen as a dot in the distance as he swims through area with trees either side of the water. As he gets closer he can be seen crashing through the waves as he moves down the ferocious river before doing a spin in the water.

The shocked eye-witness who captured the video told the Record the swimmer jumped into the water and swam down the river before heading back and repeating the act three times. The footage was posted on social media and received a mixed reception from locals.

One person said: "Don’t try this at home..." while another added: "There could be all manner of hidden obstacles in the water that could put him in danger. He is not being brave or daring, he is being stupid."

The footage received a mixed reaction from locals (Dawid Borowski)

Meanwhile a third simply added: "Eejit!" But not everyone was unimpressed, as another local resident added: "This looks like great fun."

It comes after flood-hit streets were swept by cops as part of an exercise with the Coastguard while extreme weather continues to bring chaos and halt travel across the country. Heavy rain battered much of the east of Scotland, with several severe flood warnings issued.

The man was wearing a wetsuit as he swam now the river, that had burst its banks (Dawid Borowski)

Emergency services were called to the River Don in Inverurie in Aberdeenshire after a woman was reportedly swept into the water as she tried to rescue a dog on Friday afternoon. Officers said the search for the woman swept away on the River Don resumed on Saturday morning with the woman still missing.

Inspector Rory Campbell said: “Officers, along with colleagues from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and the Coastguard, have resumed searches in the area where the woman was last seen.

“Conditions are tricky and dangerous and I am appealing to members of the public to stay away from flooded areas. Please be careful when you are out and about.”

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