About Me
God Miracle Self Rescue
Hi my name is Lorenzo Cubeddu, an Italian windsurfer living in Ireland County Kerry for the last 20 years with my beautiful wife Amanda and our 2 rescue dogs Skie and Mouse.Lorenzo and Amanda Cubeddu with their dogs Skie and Mouse. |
I work in the wonderful town of Ballybunion in Cahill's SuperValu and I have been windsurfing for more than 25 years in all different places.
I trained and have certified qualifications in sailing and watersport for the RYA (Royal Yachting Association) at the UKSA - United Kingdom Sailing Academy in West Cowes, Isle of Wight and Barbados in the Carribean, teaching in the past windsurfing and dinghy sailing in England and France.
UKSA - United Kingdom Sailing Academy |
Wild Knight |
After travelling many years to the watersport heaven Brandon Bay, Castlegregory I tried our local beach Ballybunion to save some petrol and time!
I have great respect and healthy fear of the sea and I always, before going out windsurfing, do my homework checking weather forecast, tides, waves etc... from all different sources.
So on Sunday November 11th, 2018 on a good forecast, I planned going out windsurfing for a quick afternoon session windsurfing in 25 knots south west winds with low tide at 1:14pm.
I arrived at Ballybunion beach at around 2:00pm and spent an hour checking out the conditions, wind strength with my anemometer (instrument to measure the wind's speed ), tides, shorebreak, the skies and clouds, and I started to get ready.
I always wear all year round a good winter wetsuit with a neoprene beanie hat, and that day for the first time in months I wore my neoprene boots (without these I would have been much colder and unable to climb the cliff!)
By 3:30 I was talking with a fisherman just before entering the water, Mike Enright, the man that later raised the alarm, Thank God for him!
I sailed under the wonderful backdrop of a sunny sky enjoying the speed but suddenly the wind dropped and didn't return...I was left with a difficult decision but under safety protocol...no choice, I had to drop (detach the sail) the rig as it would have been an obstacle and anchor from paddling, lying on the board now on my belly was to be my next many hours, darkness soon fell and my prayer was to be washed on land from the tide and currents.
I got incredibly sad thinking of my wife as I realised that I was in trouble and soon she would have known I was lost at sea.
The wind sea and swells picked up again and I knew I had to stay calm and not panic to save energies for staying alive.
I got seasick a couple of times with the swells and I started to pray "God if you rescue me I will give the glory to you..." and I was filled with peace and kept praying.
Then I heard a noise and saw the searching light of the Coast Guard helicopter approaching in the sky looking for me and thought "this is not too bad..." but the helicopter flew past me and went in the distance, but it was still comforting.
Human words are not enough to tell this story as there were many mini miracles within this miracle of my life being spared.
It was very surreal, even peaceful at times and it was magical to see something besides darkness when the glistening neon plankton lights arrived and washed over the board!!! as I floated and twirled and bobbed in the sea with half of my body in the water, trying desperately to hold on and protect my face from the big waves splashing.
I losted track of time as the lights of towns from the coast start to disappear and kept praying.
I got very sad and thought of my funeral and said " Please God if this is it do not let it last too long, just make me go to sleep..." and a voice in the back of my head kept saying "Stay awake!" as hypothermia started to kick in.
Suddenly I heard waves crashing realising I was pushed towards cliffs, I jumped in the water holding on to my board to the last moment before landing.
In the chaos of bashing waves I was so relieved to feel a rocky ledge under my foot as I jumped, stiff with cramps and not much feelings in my hands and feet, and all I wanted to do was going to sleep.
I felt my way in the dark and unbelievably climbed a cliff to a steep grassy slope before pulling myself to the top, where I was electrocuted by electric fences twice!!
I now know I was in the wilds of Clare!! But back then no clue where I was and wondered was I better in the Ocean!!!
I was in the middle of nowhere with only light of dispersed rural houses in the distance and had to push myself to keep walking until eventually I found help from a bearded fisherman living in a mobile house, Thank God for him!!!!
I was praying and everyone was praying, and the prayers brought me back...I could feel the breath of prayers on the water!
The other side of the story is too long to tell, its like a movie as dear friends, people from Ballybunion, colleagues from work, strangers and others stood with the rescue services looking from a cliff in Ballybunion into the abyss of the dark ocean praying...searching...believing, hoping the best.
For my wife, our pals,our relatives, my boss Cormac Cahill Supervalu,who was with my wife every step of that scary night... it was horrific and traumatic.
The guards, the rescue services, up and down the cliffs, the helicopter, the boats, people on beaches searching, I am so humbled and beyond thankful, Listowel Christian fellowship on their knees praying, my colleagues and the entire town of Ballybunion and far beyond... has been overwhelming.
A mighty warrior God rescued me from the jaws of the ocean!!!!