There was an emotional reunion on Wednesday between a Cape Breton woman and the men who saved her life.

On Monday Amanda Slaunwhite found herself in trouble at Dominion Beach in Cape Breton after strong winds pushed her out to sea.

Slaunwhite was back Wednesday to say ‘thank you’ for a gift like no other on her 34th birthday.

“I wouldn’t be here today and wouldn’t have a 34th birthday,” says Slaunwhite. “But thanks to these guys, I did.”

Slaunwhite says she’s just thankful to live another day after her traumatic experience.

“I don’t want anything for my birthday,” says Slaunwhite. “I got everything I want, I’m alive and well. I got everything I want, that’s all I can ask for.”

Slaunwhite was on a board when strong winds pushed her out to sea, leaving her to battle for her life.

“She was out a couple of thousand feet at least,” says Dominion firefighter Dave MacLeod. “That put her halfway out to Lingan Point maybe.”

When MacLeod and other members of the Dominion Volunteer Fire Department saw her struggling, they grabbed rope and survival suits, and began to swim out to where she was located.

“When we saw her and started pulling her in, it felt like we were there for four hours and that it was never going to end,” says Dominion firefighter Nathan MacNeil. “When she reached the firemen in the water, getting ready to grab her, and she landed on the beach, I could have cried. I said ‘holy God, finally.’”

MacLeod says other fire departments responded to the scene including Glace Bay, Albert Bridge, and a member of the Cape Breton Regional Police Service. They all came together to help pull Slaunwhite from the water.

“She was getting pretty tired,” says MacLeod. “She was pretty exhausted when we got to her. Pretty dangerous, very dangerous.”

Back at the beach the next day, Slaunwhite says the experience is still overwhelming.

“It was so scary that I didn’t think I was going to make it,” says Slaunwhite.

However, thanks to the fast actions of the firefighters and others, Slaunwhite is celebrating a birthday she’ll never forget.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Kyle Moore