AN ACTOR starring in a fictional dramatisation of a drowning for The Press’s Think, Don’t Swim campaign has told of his own near-death experience.

Cary Galia, 22, is playing the lead role in a hard-hitting short film which tells the tale of a young man who decides to go skinny-dipping in the River Ouse, with tragic consequences.

Amazingly, Cary, who finished a drama degree at York St John’s University earlier this year, said he nearly died in a drowning incident while he was in Italy aged 15.

Cary, of Heworth Green, said he had been diving in a rock reef when a boulder slipped and trapped his foot. He said his head was barely surfacing and every time a wave crashed over him, he gulped in water.

“I thought I was going to die, “he said. “I was stuck and did not know what to do.”

Luckily, Cary said after “what seemed forever” he managed to tug his foot free, but the memory has stayed with him to this day – something that was brought back when he filmed the drowning scene for the film last week.

“The shock of the water hits you,” he said. “The cold sets in and you are gasping for air. It felt very real.”

He said he was honoured to be starring in the film, and said: “I hope it makes an impact and people sit up and listen. “I just want to do this campaign justice.”

Film-maker Christopher David, boss of York-based, award-winning Flash Frame Productions, has agreed to make the short film in a bid to raise awareness of the risks of falling or jumping into the city’s rivers.

Last Friday, filming took place at Bar Salvation, in York, with Cary and co-star actress Michelle Cousins, a second-year York St John student. Students and former students from York St John University also agreed to act in the film as extras.

Michelle, 21, of Park Grove, In York, said when she heard about the campaign, she knew she wanted to get involved.

“It is for such a good cause,” she said. “And you never know, this film might save a life.”

Christopher David has already filmed an interview with Vicki and Abbi Horrocks, the mother and sister of Richard Horrocks, a 21-year-old bartender who drowned after leaping off a balcony over the Ouse following his last shift at a riverside bar in July. Richard was the third person to die in York’s rivers so far this year and his death sparked the launch of our campaign.

Ian Gillies, a York councillor, was also interviewed about his experiences many years ago when he was a coroner’s officer in York and former firefighter Steve Fila, now director of technical services at Commercial Diving and Marine Services, of Appleton Roebuck, also spoke graphically of the horrendous consequences when a body had been in the water over a period of time, and of his experiences of having to search in poor visibility for victims.

•All the interviewees said they were happy to assist if it meant it might help prevent further tragedies.The Press would like to thank Bar Salvation for loaning the premises for the filming.