Search for stranger who in 1996 saved child from drowning in Wharfe

Whilst The Strid is idyllic and can look benign on the surface, the current is notoriously powerful as the river is forced through a narrow gap in the rocks. It's claimed lives over the decades including children.

Tom Barrett was eight years old when on a hot August afternoon in 1996 he was paddling in a shallow part of the river with older children.

But he became separated from them and was quickly pulled downstream. He told the Craven Herald it was a moment that's forever etched in his memory.

He said: "One second I was laughing with friends and the next moment I couldn't even shout for help because my head was going under the water and was getting into my lungs. I can picture it like it was yesterday and it still gives me shivers."

His mum Terri was watching the children playing and saw that he was in trouble. She screamed out to a group of men who were nearby and swinging on a rope into the river.

Tom as a child

Fortunately, one of them dived in to rescue Tom, who was almost completely underwater and travelling down the river at speed.

Tom remembers: "He managed to get to me and carried me to the side of the river. I was gasping for breath when he put me down. If he hadn't saved me, I would have died. No question about it. I was a goner."

His mum was in shock and after thanking the man, took Tom and his brother home.

Tom, who is now 36 and works as a local journalist including for the Craven Herald, says he would like to meet the man who saved his life to say thank you.

He said: "Nearly drowning at The Strid is something that I've never been able to get out of my head. What happened to that man? He risked his own life to save me."

With summer approaching, Tom also wants to warn parents of the dangers of swimming at The Strid. He said: "Do not ever let your children swim in that river, I was very lucky."

Can you help Tom find the man who saved him? Email the Craven Herald at news@cravenherald.co.uk