By Kirsty Topping
Graeme Thom was helped by the naked men
A STRICKEN motorist has revealed that he hugged the two naked men who came to his rescue.
Graeme Thom’s Ford Galaxy was overwhelmed by the flash floods which hit Scotland earlier this month.
He was helped to push the vehicle from the water, in the Liberton area of Edinburgh, by two men wearing just their birthday suits.
While the man in the centre of the image has been identified as 26-year-old Australian Matt Prowd, the identity of the other two men had remained a mystery.
However the driver of the car, who is not visible in the photo, has come forward to talk of his
“disbelief’ at the arrival of his starkers Samaritans. Graeme and his friend Cal had been heading for a drink at a nearby pub when they get stuck.
He said:
“I was driving down the road and saw that cars were turning back and I saw the water in front of them. I was going to turn back but I looked behind and saw the number of cars behind and thought I’d go for it.
“I went through the water and there was a car coming in the opposite direction which stopped and turned, so I slowed down and ended up coming to a stop.
“The engine wouldn’t even turn over. “
Sat wondering if they were going to have to get out and push, Graeme said he and Cal were surprised when help showed up.
The ‘nude Samaritans’ came to Thom’s aid with barely a moment to spare
“The water was right over the top of the car and then the windscreen cleared and I saw these two naked men running towards us.
“We thought they were going to run right past, we thought they were streakers but one of them yelled
“Put it in neutral mate’ and they pushed us out of the water.’Afterwards I said thanks and he said
“Give us a hug’, so I did. He was standing outside and I was in the driver’s seat and we hugged through the window.
“That hug was the most uncomfortable one I’ve ever had. I’ve never hugged a naked guy before, hope I never will again. “
When they eventually got to the bar, fellow drinkers were reluctant to believe the mens’ tale.
Graeme continued:
“They didn’t believe us until they saw the story in the newspaper, but I think as the night went on and there was more drink the story might have been embellished. “
Despite the shocking circumstances of the rescue Graeme says he was grateful to his rescuers.
“They got us out of a real mess,’ he said.
“We owe them a drink. “
He even joked that he wanted their numbers incase he got into another sticky spot, though this could prove difficult as Matt is believed to have returned home following the end of his holiday.
The naked rescuers hit the headlines after Stephen Loy, an insurance worker from the city snapped them while out taking pictures of flood damage.
