‘I owe my life to you guys’: Byron Bay surfer brought to safety after making emergency call from Apple Watch

A surfer has recounted his miraculous escape after using his Apple Watch to call for help when he was dragged out 1km to sea.

Rick Shearman was out for his regular morning body surf at Tallow Beach in Byron Bay on Saturday when things got a “bit gnarly”.

“I jumped in for a quick five-minute swim, I was actually actively seeking out some nice waves,” he told the Today show.

“And after being out in the water for about 20 minutes, it was just getting a bit gnarly. So I decided to make my way in, and on my way in to shore encountered a lot of big dumpers and got caught in the impact zone and held under.”

The 49-year-old surfer said he was losing his breath and energy and desperately needed to “get out of there”.

“I hadn’t had my morning Wheaties. As I said, I just got out of bed, so I was well aware my energy stocks were low and I couldn’t take any more … I needed to get out of there,” he said.

Getting back to shore was “impossible” for Mr Shearman, who had to think outside the box.

“I had to take stock of next-best options. What could I do to get out of this situation? And honestly, I was stuck and it was at that time that I realised I had this Apple Watch on,” he said.

“I thought there must be some kind of SOS feature on it. I’d had no reason to look at that before but worked it out on the fly and engaged a call through to emergency services.”

Mr Shearman told the ABC he was out at sea for about an hour, telling emergency services where he was.

Rescuer Alex Caroll told the Today show the ordeal was a “very critical rescue situation” for Lifesaving NSW, which was initially tasked with rescuing a potential missing swimmer.

Mr Shearman took the opportunity to thank Mr Caroll for his rescue and apologised for not doing so sooner.

“Sorry Alex, I had a bit going on the other day when I saw you. I didn’t get a chance to properly thank you for your efforts, mate,” he said.

“I’m so eternally grateful for you and all the efforts of all the agencies, staff, volunteers involved. It was an incredible, incredible effort. It was seamless and efficient and I owe my life to you guys.”

Mr Shearman added he wasn’t sure the emergency call from his watch would connect as he didn’t have a plan with the watch.

“The fact that I was able to make that emergency call from my watch is amazing … I don’t pay any money for a plan,” he said.

“I really don’t know how it worked, but yeah, got me out of trouble for sure.”

Surf Life Saving NSW rescue co-ordinator Jimmy Keough said they were called to Broken Head Beach at Byron Bay just after 10am on Saturday.

The Byron Bay and Lennox Head Surf Life Saving Clubs, as well as Byron Bay lifeguards and a Queensland Surf Life Saving helicopter responded, with Mr Shearman being winched from the water.

“(He was) suffering minor cramps and exposure and was transported back to shore to await an ambulance and emergency services … he was transported to Byron Bay District Hospital where he was later released with no further treatment required,” he said.

“During the process of the male being in distress, he actually activated his apple watch and that notified emergency services.”

Mr Keough said Mr Shearman was able to maintain voice contact with emergency services as he floated and remained calm.

“Just 10 o’clock we were notified and he was returned to shore about 10.40am, so it was all pretty quick,” Mr Keough added.