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Teen photographer Byron Mcloughlin rescued by Angelo Faraire and Ryan Craig.
Byron Mcloughlin gets dragged out of the water by Angelo Faraire, left, and Ryan Craig.

Dirty Water: Teen surf photographer nearly killed at Teahupoo recounts near-drowning!

"I've swum Pipeline, I've swum some of the heaviest breaks in the world and no wave, but no wave, is like Teahupoo."

A couple of weeks before the Olympic surf event at Teahupoo, a teenage Australian photographer was found floating face-down during a heavy eight-foot Teahupoo swell.

Nineeten-year-old Byron Mclouhglin, who was shooting the action from an inflatable bodyboard, had been sucked over the falls on an earlier set and had ended up in the lagoon. The former tour surfer Michel Bourez went in to pick him up and brought him back to the channel.

Thirty minutes later he was found face down in the water by American photographer Ryan Craig and Tahitian bodyboarder Angelo Faraire.

Mcloughlin had blue lips and foam pouring out of his mouth.

If it wasn’t for the courage of the fearless Tahitian crew, this minnow would be out!

Over the course of this forty-minute episode of the very occasional Dirty Water podcast, Byron Mcloughlin recounts his Teahupoo brush with death, as well as his almost fatal encounter with Padang Padang in Bali two years ago.

Compelling!

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21 Comments
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Ef Jay Cee

Trying sooooo hard for his 15mins of fame

Ef Jay Cee

Such a kook. Daddies money can’t buy you everything eh? Go back to curl curl and take up bird photography.

BSP

Gotta love a humble kid….

Doggi

Should have let this mouth breather drown when he decided to swim out to Padang2 with no fins and waterhousing.

Ef Jay Cee

I heard about that. Total kook.

Stick man

I’ve swum your Mum!

deeks

He’ll be foiling shooting 🔫 and drowning next

Dim Sim

How many packets of lifesavers did you sling the kid to gabber gabber jaw jaw for you?

Eddie Haiku

If this poor shooter
Ever shoots porn, he will get
Sucked over the balls

Beef & Beer
JSC

He is published a lot more for being a near-drowning victim than he is as a photographer – does he actually produce any images?

Beef & Beer

Only 2 photos on Instagram by the looks.
I think you’ll find more shots taken by his parents of him pretending to take surf shots than you’ll find of surf shots he’s taken.
So you’d have to say no, not really…

Sean Connery

Hey Byron… Wow thats really cool that you are a photographer. Do you make a decent living doing that?

Really depends on the month. Sometimes Dad is generous.

snapper

Such exaggerated hyperbole…this young photog has clearly ever shot at slabbing Cowell’s Cove.

Otto

You have to hand it to the French. While the French may have stopped using the guillotine in 1979, they obviously haven’t let go of their love for a pile of heads on public display.

Com Turren

Dirty Water Lives!!! Also, this kid is a danger to himself and everyone else in serious conditions until he either figures out how to take and/or avoid a critical pounding, quits, and/or uses all nine of his lives.

Happy Camper

Byron Mcloughlin Nearly Drowns:
The story that has 9 lives

Beef & Beer

Fuck off Dezza
This isn’t needed…

The Bitchy Crab

Ha! I think you’re right, boss

Sellme fitzgobbins

Glad he’s ok,doubling down on his story confirms he is a fucken kook though .

ricmatic

the preceding never happened – I was about 9 years old, stuck on a rock after blowing a take off, screaming, panicking then the tide went out. walked to the beach. nothing to see here.. What goes on stays on, words to live by


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