Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole, 20 (pictured) was hailed a hero after it was learned he was one of two people who dived into the water just after midnight on April 24 to save a woman, but sadly drowned in the process
A 'kind and loving' hero died after jumping into the River Thames to rescue a woman he heard screaming for help - despite calls from onlookers begging him not to go in the water, an inquest has heard.
Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole, 20, ran down steps of London Bridge to the river's edge before undressing and entering the water after hearing the woman shouting 'help me, I can't swim!' on April 24 earlier this year.
He and another man, Joaquin Garcia, attempted to swim 40 metres to retrieve the panicking woman, but Mr Olubunmi-Adewole then got into trouble himself.
Marine police were able to rescue the woman and Mr Garcia, but Mr Olubunmi-Adewole, known to his friends as 'Jimi', was found dead around five hours later.
An inquest into his death opened at Southwark Coroner's Court on Tuesday.
Assistant Coroner Dr Julian Morris told the court that Nigerian-born Mr Olubunmi-Adewole was on his way home from work at a central London restaurant when he began making his way across London Bridge at around midnight.
Reading a witness' account, Dr Morris said the two men were seen running before shouting: 'Where are you?'
A woman was then seen in the Thames waving her arms screaming: 'Help me, help me, I can't swim!'
Mr Olubunmi-Adewole was posthumously put forward for a Royal Humane Society award by City of London Police for his bravery and selfless actions'
Pictured: A police boat on the River Thames with London Bridge in the background during the search for the man who jumped into the river to save a woman
The two men then ran down steps towards the river bank and were seen 'talking to each other and getting undressed', the court heard.
Dr Morris said the woman was 'around 40 metres away' and the witness recalled hearing members of the public 'shouting not to go in'.
However, they saw a man jump into the water
