A man who administered CPR to an unconscious young girl at Marsaxlokk is being hailed a hero for his quick action. 

The incident happened late on Tuesday at il-Magħluq in Marsaxlokk when the girl, five, was seen face down in the water.

The girl's father said his daughter appeared to have been underwater for only a few seconds, possibly having been dragged by a current. She was pulled up, unconscious by her uncle and according to an eyewitness, she had no pulse. 

"We lived through moments of horror," a witness wrote on Facebook, describing how her family had looked on in desperation as several people tried to revive her. 

"Fortunately the ambulance did not take long to arrive. Had it taken a minute longer, I do not know what could have happened," one witness said.  

Stephen Borg, who swiftly administered CPR, described the situation as a scary one.

"I never imagined I would have to do something like that. It was one thing following a first aid course and quite another to have a young girl in your arms in that condition. But, thank God, we brought her around," he said on Facebook.

Later he told Times of Malta that he been informed by relatives that the girl is 'okay' .

Mr Borg stressed that he was not the only one who helped the girl, and he thanked a woman who monitored the girl's pulse and another man, Joseph Grech, who called the ambulance.

"I really urge people to follow first-aid courses. It's really cheap and quick. It's an investment for life."

The girl's father thanked all those who had helped her and saved her life, particularly Mr Borg.

Such incidents demonstrated the value of first aid courses and the importance of having first aiders on beaches.

"Well done Stephen Borg you will always be a hero in the eyes of those parents and a guardian angel to that little girl, we are all on this earth for some reason and I believe you have completed one of those reasons," another witness said.