‘He’s my hero’: Diver rescues lost ring in Nova Scotia lake

A good Samaritan dives-in to Porters Lake to help a family resurface a lost ring with sentimental value.

Anthony Doherty thought he’d lost his ring forever, but thanks to a dedicated diver, he’s been reunited with the deeply personal item.

Doherty said he was swimming in the water with his kids on Wednesday when he grabbed a floaty. His finger got caught on a hook and his ring fell below the murky waves.

Doherty searched for the ring, but to no avail.

“I got the ring from my father-in-law, who’s now passed,” he said. “I asked for his daughter’s hand in marriage and he gave me his father’s ring. It was very, very valuable to me.

“I never thought I’d see it again. I left here devastated.”

Doherty’s wife put out a call for help on social media and recreational diver Nate McLagan answered.

“I went out there with my detector,” he said. “Luckily enough when I swung over it, it makes the noise and vibrates and that told me I was dead on. I got a little closer and then, boom, found it.”

Doherty said he woke up to a picture of McLagan holding the ring in his hand.

“It’s too good to be true,” he said. “I showed up here to meet him and I couldn’t hold my tears. It was tears of joy.

“The ring is home. It’s on my father-in-law’s ashes and it’s going to stay there.”

Doherty commended McLagan for recovering the priceless piece of family heritage.

“Huge thanks to Nate,” he said. “He’s my hero today.”

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