up unconscious under water after being hit by a wave off a Tucker's Town beach.

Last night colleague Dr. Stefan Walther -- who helped rescue Dr. Burnie -- said: "It could have been worse.

"If we hadn't noticed and pulled him out it could have been a lot worse.'' Dr. Burnie, who was bodysurfing off Frick's Bay, smashed his head on rocks after the wave hit.

But friends spotted he had got into trouble and went to the rescue. Dr.

Walther said: "There were a lot of big waves out there -- but I didn't see the one which knocked him down.

"He ended up upside down, but he came up, took a breath, and was all right.'' Dr. Burnie, now in private practice at the Endsmeet Animal Hospital, was dragged to shore and appeared to be concussed.

His friends took him to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, where doctors gave Dr. Burnie the all-clear after a CAT scan and a six-hour observation period.

Former Government vet rescued in beach drama Dr. Walther said: "He was pretty disorientated so we took him to hospital.

The King Edward did a very good job.'' He added that Dr. Burnie had recovered enough to go out fishing on his day off yesterday and he was expected to back at work as normal today. Dr. Burnie could not be contacted for comment yesterday. Dr. Burnie's close shave came only a day after businessman Jeffrey Castro died off Paget's Elbow Beach in a tragic swimming accident in heavy seas.

Mr. Castro and friends were in the water off the beach in the early hours of Saturday morning when he disappeared from sight.

Frantic friends alerted Police and a major search was launched. The body was spotted by a member of the public off Astwood Cove, Warwick, later on Saturday morning.

Bermuda's current rough sea state -- whipped up by hurricane force weather in the Atlantic -- has led to a series of problems for swimmers over the last few days.