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Paramedics Rescue Woman From Hudson River Near Pier 25

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Two paramedics jumped into action to save a woman from the Hudson River in lower Manhattan Monday morning.

FDNY Rescue Paramedic Niall O'Shaughnessy and his partner, Moses Nelson, received a call about a woman in the water near Pier 25 around 7:30 a.m.

When they arrived at the scene, they found Parks Department personnel had already thrown a life preserver to the woman, but she was still struggling.

"As I got to her she was noticeably tired and she verbalized that she was too tired to hold on and she started to drift away from the life ring a little bit," O'Shaughnessy told 1010 WINS. "I just made a quick decision and took off my boots, and just jumped in to grab her before she submerged underwater."

He stayed with her and kept her calm while waiting for the FDNY Marine Unit to arrive.

O'Shaughnessy said the woman was scared and shocked, but did not suffer any significant injuries.

"Because of the quick response by the whole FDNY team she's going to be fine," he said.

O'Shaughnessy said he's not a hero, it's just part of the job.

"I think a true hero is somebody that's not trained or not used to these situations and they decide to help, not somebody like me who is trained to be in emergency situations," said O'Shaughnessy.

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