'I don't think they realised the danger' - Boy, 15, after dramatic sea rescue of two men of coast of Skye

A teenage sailing enthusiast who saved two men stranded on an inflatable toy dinghy says he has been inundated with messages since the rescue.

Archie Law was praised by the RNLI for his “quick thinking” when the drama unfolded off the coast of the Isle of Skye on Saturday evening.

The 15-year-old says he saw the men from his house and decided to take swift action as he could see them drifting further out to sea at Broadford Bay.

Archie told STV News: “I went down to the shore and had my binoculars and realised they were paddling and going round in circles.

“I thought maybe I need to do something here. So I talked to my mum and we made the decision that it wasn’t too bad a night to go out. The tide was in and I was in my boat, so I went out to see if they needed any help.

“I’m out there every day pretty much and at the weekends I help out fishing boats.”

Archie says when he got to the pair “they were pretty chilled” but they had no lifejacket or phones with them.

“I don’t think they realised the severity of the situation,” he added.

Archie and the boat at the old pier where he brought the two men in Archie Law

“There was water in their dinghy, the water was up to their heads, their clothes were wet and they didn’t have swimming stuff on.

“They had no life jackets or phones. I was pretty shocked, I didn’t believe that when I got there. They were glad to see me.

“They could have drowned. It could have been very serious.”

Archie’s mum Tansy added: “I was watching him through binoculars and I couldn’t quite believe what was happening, but I was very pleased when he phoned to say he got them safely to the shore.”

Archie returned to the sea on Sunday where he regularly enjoys fishing and says his phone has not stopped since the big rescue.

He added: “I’ve been looking at messages all day. The skipper on my boat was laughing saying there will be paparazzi at my house.

“I actually saved two people’s lives. It feels really good, it makes me want to join the RNLI.”

Speaking of the incident, Andrew MacDonald, helm for Kyle RNLI said: “Thanks to the quick thinking of the teenager going out in his own boat to rescue the two casualties, a far more serious situation was averted.

“We’d like to remind people that blow up inflatable toys should be kept for use in swimming pools and not open water, and to always ensure that you have lifejackets on and a means of communicating to the emergency services if you get into any difficulty.”