Heroic police officers bravely save man from plunging from Costa del Sol apartment block

Two police officers who responded to a call to help a man in his 30s who was very descibed as "agitated" and believed to be under the influence of a narcotic substance, have said that the 20 minutes they held on to him to stop him from jumping from an apartment block in Torre del Mar on the eastern Costa del Sol felt "eternal".

Officers José Miguel and Claudio described the man as "totally out of his mind" as they found him perched on the balcony about 10 metres off the ground and unable to speak properly. "I jumped in as fast as I could, managed to grab him by the ankle and together with Claudio I held him," explained José Miguel.

Although they tried to pull him up and get him to safety, the man began to move "very violently", which made the manoeuvre impossible. Head first and with more than half his body hanging over the balcony, police officer Claudio Silva explains that the only alternative was to ask the local residents to help: "I asked them to throw mattresses, pillows or any object that could cushion the fall".

It took 20 "eternal" minutes for the locals to coordinate a kind of padded pyramid. Eventually they let him fall onto the padded structure and not only did the man live but he was not hurt in the fall. "It's very satisfying because this person was not in normal circumstances and to have been able to give him a second chance to get his life back on track... it's a joy", Claudio acknowledged.

However, both officers suffered injuries during the rescue. José Miguel fractured a bone in his hand and Claudio damaged a nerve in his forearm. But it could have been worse, because they also risked their lives: "We took a risk because the railing could have given way as it is a building with a fairly old structure," said the officer.

But the officers have taken with them the reward of a heroic service and a lesson after many years in the force: the importance of cooperation. "Neither my height nor my strength made it possible for me to get him onto the balcony, so without the cooperation of my colleagues and the neighbours, who were just waking up and got up very quickly, it would have been impossible," he said.