A Greek ferry came to the rescue after a young girl clinging to an inflatable unicorn toy floated out into open sea.
The dramatic rescue was caught on video and even earned praise from the Greek Prime Minister, according to the New York Times.
The captain of the ferry who rescued the 3-year-old said he only did what anyone would do.
Grigoris Karnesis and the crew from his ferry pulled the little girl, along with her inflatable toy unicorn, from the waters near the port of Rio on Monday.
"The child was flabbergasted," he told Skai TV. "She was terrified, and that is why she had grabbed so firmly onto her inflatable."
The ferry captain couldn't believe what he was seeing at first and quickly had to maneuver his 331-foot-long ferry next to the toy so someone could get her without toppling the inflatable unicorn, he recounted to the New York Times. He described how his brother, the ship mechanic, scooted to the edge of the ramp used to load cars and pulled the girl from the water.
Passenger Petros Kritsonis posted video of the rescue online to "“to show the danger of the sea toys we all use extensively.”
The girl had been swimming with her parents at a beach near the port when strong currents swept her away. The area is known for having strong currents.
According to the New York Times, the girl's family told the ferry captain that the family tried to reach the girl when she started to drift from the beach but they got caught in the current.
The captain estimated she had been floating for about 20 minutes before she was finally pulled to safety.
