Holidaying Bermudians told of their doomed battle to the save the life of a man found floating underwater off Spanish Point Park yesterday afternoon.

But despite a frantic fight to revive William Massop, the 63-year-old Jamaican builder from Pembroke was pronounced dead at the scene by a doctor arriving shortly after.

Kevin Rawlins told he was in a tent when he saw his brother Troy shouting at him from a boat. He said: ?There?s a man underwater.?

While Troy dived in, Kevin, a nurse with CPR skills, swam out to the spot about ten yards off the rocky shore.

The pair brought the man in. Kevin Rawlins said: ?My brother was getting tired, I was pulling the man in with my brother behind me.

?The man?s head was still above water. I did CPR on the shore and stuff started coming out of his mouth, water, sand and then food.

?I tried everything for ten minutes trying to bring him back but I think he was under the water too long.?

Speaking on television news last night Troy Rawlins said the man?s wife had said she was worried about her husband who had left earlier for a swim off the Pembroke beauty spot so he went out on his boat to take a look.

?We could have saved him if we had known five minutes earlier,? he said.

And Kevin said he did not know what had caused the death.

?I didn?t see any bruises or anything looking like he had head injuries or marks.? also spoke to Hupert Gordon who arrived at the scene after hearing the awful news about his brother-in-law who he said had been in good health and spirits before yesterday?s tragedy.

He said: ?He was a nice person, he got along with everybody.?

Alan Barnett had also rushed to the scene and said his knees were still shaking from the shock of hearing the news about his friend.

?He was a nice man. I had known him for 50 years.?

It is understood Mr. Massop, from Fenton?s Drive, leaves a wife and two grown-up children. A Police spokesman said children had seen the man slip while he was in the water and go under.

?As a result two men in a small craft began to canvass the area and saw the silhouette of a man lying at the bottom of the water.?

A doctor pronounced the man dead at 5.57 p.m. but no official cause of death has yet been given.

Witnesses are asked to call P.c. Lock on 295-0011.