A swimmer was pulled from the sea near Brighton Marina after being seen “face up in the water but not responding”.
The dramatic rescue happened on Saturday afternoon at around 2.45pm near the western arm of the marina.
Dozens of fishermen saw the man and raised the alarm to Brighton and Hove City Council’s seafront team.
He was understood to be “face up in the water and breathing but not responding”.
The council said he is believed to have survived the incident.
One witness said: “He seemed to be breathing but unresponsive. He was in the water for quite some time.
“I saw he was handed over to the RNLI who passed them on to ambulance crews.
“I think it highlights the importance of our seafront lifeguard teams.”
There were around 50 fishermen on the western arm of the marina that afternoon.
A person on a passing boat is also understood to have helped with the rescue.
Lead city councillor for tourism Alan Robins told The Argus: “At around 2.45pm on Saturday afternoon our seafront team were notified of concerns about a person in the water close to Brighton Marina.
“The patrol boat and three of our seafront officers were at the scene within minutes and worked closely with colleagues from the RNLI to get the person out of the water and administer emergency first aid.
“The two teams then carried the person on a stretcher to be handed over to paramedics.
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“We understand the person survived the incident and believe this exceptionally quick response may have helped save their life.
“I’d like to thank our seafront team and the RNLI for their magnificent response to this incident and for all the superb work they do day in day out to keep our residents and visitors safe.”
It comes as the decision to cut the number of lifeguards was reversed by the council last week.
The move was made to save £100,000 of the council’s budget. This new decision will cost the council an additional £93,000.
Lifeguard cover on Brighton beach has gone from seven back to ten.
South East Coast Ambulance Service has been approached for comment.
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