On Thursday evening, Alobaidi had been spending the evening at the Rhine promenade with another person from his housing. They were sitting near the “Moby Dick” drinking Cola. “Suddenly, we saw a bunch of people run by us, and they were pointing at the water and screaming,” he said. It became clear to them immediately that someone was drowning and they needed to do something.

The two men quickly discussed what to do and because his friend did not know how to swim, Alobaidi decided to jump in. “I took off my T-shirt and pants and jumped in the Rhine. All in about 30 seconds,” he says. Alobaidi grew up in Basra on the Forat River, and fled to Germany about six months ago because of war.

In the Rhine, a 16-year-old was fighting for his life, according to police. Police spokesperson Robert Scholten said there had been a swimming accident which left the youth fully exhausted and trying to stay afloat. At 9:45 p.m., witnesses called the emergency number and by the time rescue teams arrived, a crowd of 200 had gathered. Alobaidi was the only one who had taken action in the meantime.

“A woman called out that I should put the boy on my back and keep his head above water,” said the 27-year-old. He was able to get the youth to the pier where the anchor was and hold tight. At that point, others tried to help, four of them also going in the water.

According to information from Alobaidi, rescuers attempted to help him and the boy but without success. He brought the boy to shore where they were then tended to by emergency personnel. Fadi Karaki, the interpreter, noted that Alobaidi walked back barefoot to his refugee housing following the rescue. Karaki explained to him the next day about the dangers of swimming in the Rhine due to the strong current. On Monday, the Iraqi swimmer will begin an Integration course. (Orig. text: Jens Kleinert)