Skegness Magazine

Visitor’s Life Saved
Billy Thompson’ Heroic Effort

An exciting incident occurred off the Skegness Pier on Thursday last, as the result of which a Skegness visitor owes his life to the presence of mind of Billy Thompson, Skegness’s well-known one-legged diver.

A visitor, representing himself to be a strong club swimmer, was given permission to dive from the Pier Head. He dived into the water from the iron step ladder on the south side, and swimming about was gradually taken by the current away from the pier. Endeavouring to return, he found he could make no headway against the current, and called for help. A boy hearing his cries called the attention of Mr H W Woodroffe to the swimmer’s plight who immediately ran for the lifebuoy and threw it in the swimmer’s direction. The rope attached to the lifebuoy, however, was not long enough to reach the swimmer, he having been carried several further yards southwards away from the pier.

Very fortunately for the visitor, Billy Thompson had just previously finished his attractive diving and swimming exhibition, being in the act of returning to his dressing room. Giving instructions for a boat to be launched from the shore, he dived into the water again and swam strongly to the swimmer, who, spent by his efforts to swim against the current, was well neigh exhausted.

Mr Thompson was only just in time and had to support the visitor with one arm and keep himself going with the other arm and leg.

It was some twenty minutes before the boat got to the spot, the boatman taking both swimmers to the pier. The visitor had swallowed a great amount of sea-water and was in a pitiable state. He later received medical attention, and has now fully recovered from his nerve-trying experience.

Professor Bill Thompson’s life-saving feat, which is not the first by any means, should meet with some tangible public recognition.

Source: Skegness News 1915