Prince William Spends New Year’s Morning in Daring Rescue Effort
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Christopher Furlong – WPA Pool/Getty Images(LONDON) — While the rest of the world was ringing in 2013, the heir to the British throne was trying to rescue a man who had been swept out to sea in northwest England.
It was just 15 minutes after midnight in England when the call came in that an unnamed 41-year-old man walking his dog on a pier had been swept into the sea. Prince William, a helicopter search and rescue pilot in the Royal Air Force, was in the air within a minute, battling 50 mile per hour winds during the 90-minute hunt.
The future king gave up personal time with his pregnant wife, who was, at that moment, celebrating New Years with her family.
The rescue effort failed, however, and the coast guard has called off its search.
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