This is the moment a Senegalese migrant risks his own life in Northern Spain when he jumps into a river to save the life of an old man who had fallen into the water, passed out and was on the cusp of drowning.

Mohamed Diouf, a Senegalese migrant living in the Northern Spanish city of Bilbao, saved the 72-year-old man, who was not named, after he fell from Misericordia bridge into the Bilbao estuary at 3.00 pm last Sunday (20th June).

Mohamed told local news site Antena 3 Noticias that: “There was very little time to act, as within a few minutes he would have drowned.”

Antena 3 reports that Mohamed reacted quickly, throwing his bag to one side and jumping straight into the river.

In the video people on the bridge can be heard shouting “help him quicky” as Mohamed swims towards the unconscious man.

The current and the weight of the drowning man seriously complicated the rescue as Mohamed uses all of his strength to keep the man’s head above water as he pushes him towards the river bank.

They make it to the bank where a several meters high wall adds more drama to the situation.

Two of Mohamed’s friends, both reportedly Senegalese migrants, and an off-duty cop immediately jump in the water and using life jackets thrown to them by a boat keep the man from slipping below the surface.

Locals then throw Mohamed a rope which they use to pull the man to safety after which countless people can be heard congratulating Mohamed calling him a “champion” and telling him he has “earned a rest.”

According to AD Shotokai, a local football team where Mohamed plays, this is not the first time he has saved a life.

AD Shotokai posted on their Facebook page praising their player and adding that last year he jumped into a river and saved a little girl who much like the old man in this video had slipped into the water and was about to drown.

They added that: “We should remember what happened here today and ignore the ‘blah blah blah’ of the fascists. Thanks to this man who they call ‘illegal’ two people are alive today.”

Mohamed said he doesn’t see himself as a hero and he would do it again without a second thought.

Antena 3 reports that that 72-year-old was taken to hospital where he regained consciousness but more information about his condition was not given.