Surfboard Helps 'Lucky' Scottish Surfer Survive 32 Hours at Sea

A Scottish man is "extremely lucky" to be alive after spending more than 32 hours at sea with only his surfboard. Matthew Bryce, 22, was spotted by a coast guard helicopter some 13 miles off the coast of Argyll, Scotland, around 7:30pm Monday after first jumping in the waves almost a day and a half earlier, reports the BBC. Bryce, from Glasgow, had told family members he was planning to surf at a beach off Argyll around 9am Sunday and hit the waves about 2.5 hours later. When he hadn't returned after several hours, family members alerted police, per ABC News.

Coast guard rescue teams from several bases combed the shoreline and sea near the Argyll beach for hours, per the Guardian. But just as hope and daylight were fading Monday, a coast guard helicopter spotted Bryce with his bright orange surfboard some 13 miles off the coast, where a rip current had apparently carried him, reports Surfer. Hypothermic but conscious, he was airlifted to a hospital in Northern Ireland where he's now recovering. Says a coast guard rep: Bryce's ability to stay with his surfboard helped save him, along with "all the right clothing including a thick neoprene suit." (A wetsuit might've saved this shark attack survivor.)