Eric Dane was 'heartbroken’ after daughter saved him in the ocean after ALS diagnosis

Eric Dane’s ALS diagnosis nearly ended his life abruptly while swimming in the ocean.

The “Grey’s Anatomy” star opened up about the harrowing moment just a few months ago when he was on a boat trip with his youngest daughter and came within risk of drowning.

“When I jumped into the ocean that day and realized I couldn’t swim and generate enough power to get myself back to the boat. I thought, ‘Oh God,’” he said in his “Good Morning America” interview with Diane Sawyer.

“And I realized in that moment I’m not safe in the water anymore.”

His 13-year-old daughter, Georgia, had to come to his rescue.

“She dragged me back to the boat,” Dane said, adding he was breaking down in tears, but made sure she was able to go back to having fun with her friend and snorkel with a guide.

“I was just heartbroken,” he said. The actor is also a father to 15-year-old Billie with Rebecca Gayheart.

In April of this year, Dane announced he had been diagnosed with ALS, often known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, which affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, leading to loss of muscle control and eventually paralysis. ALS worsens over time, and there is no known cure.

Dane admits he is angry about the diagnosis, in part because he lost his father at age seven to suicide.

“My father was taken from me when I was young, and now there’s a very good chance I’m going to be taken from my girls while they’re very young.”

He continued, “I mean really, at the end of the day, all I want to do is just spend time with family and work a little bit if I can.”

The 52-year-old told Variety in a recent interview he plans to keep working, “But I have limitations that I understand will preclude me from playing certain roles.”

Dane said he is working on the upcoming season of “Euphoria” and finished his Amazon Prime series “Countdown.

“As far as that goes, I’m pretty capable.”

Dane’s full “Good Morning America” interview is available online and will continue tomorrow, when he sits down with his doctor for more details on his condition.