Woman swept away by current swims 7.5 hours to reach shore

GİRESUN

A 41-year-old woman swam for seven and a half hours to reach the shore in the northern province of Giresun after being swept out to sea by a powerful current.

Feyza Alya Turan, a resident in the Espiye district of Giresun, drifted about 3 kilometers off the coast after powerful currents pulled her away from the beach.

When Turan failed to hold on to the buoys about 3 kilometers off the coast, she tried to swim against the current and surprisingly managed to return to the shore after about seven and a half hours.

Describing her struggle for survival in the cold waters to local media, Turan said that seeing the shore was right in front of her but not being able to reach it for hours was horrifying but she did not give up and that her “determination kept [her] alive.”

“I kept calm in those moments and did not panic. I just tried to swim to reach the shore. I didn't feel tired, thirsty or hungry during those moments and just focused on swimming to the shore. I don't know how many hours passed, but it was around 9 p.m. when I got to the shore. I was in the sea for about 7.5 hours. When I got to the beach, there were paramedics waiting for me. After the first examination, they took me to the hospital since I was exhausted after so many hours. My advice would be to definitely not panic in such a situation,” she said.

Explaining that when she did not return home in the evening, her relatives called on her phone and re it was answered by other people at the beach, Turan said that was how everyone knew that she was lost in the sea.

Explaining about the incident, Turan said that when she did not return home in the evening, her relatives called on her phone, and when other people at the beach answered the call, it was at that moment that everyone in her family came to know that she was lost in the sea.

Though gendarmerie teams and paramedics rushed to the scene after notifications, she had already managed to swim back to the shore by the time they arrived, Turan added.