Girl, 14, hailed as national hero for risking life in attempt to save boy, 15, from drowning in River Wyre
“What Shelby did was truly incredible for one so young”
A 14-year-old girl has been hailed a national hero and awarded one of the country’s highest bravery honours for risking her life in an underwater fight to save a 15-year-old boy from drowning.
Shelby Quigley from Lytham St Annes was in serious danger of drowning as she battled in the fast flowing River Wyre, in her desperate fight to save a boy who was in the river and had sunk below the surface.
At the time of the incident on May 15 last year, Shelby was taking part in a Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Expedition.
She threw off heavy clothing and walking boots, rushed to the river and, unable to see the boy on the surface, dived under water and finally saw an arm near the river bottom.
After surfacing to take a breath, Shelby then dived back down to reach the boy and drag him to the surface. However, the water was too deep for her to stand in and hold the boy above her.
She then found a rock on the river bed and by standing on it managed to hold the boy above her head but could hardly manage to get her own head above the water to take breaths.
Shelby was totally under water for much of the time until a man joined her in the river and dragged the boy to the bank where the fight to resuscitate him was started.
He was then airlifted to hospital, but sadly died there the following day.
At the time, our sister site, the Post covered the incident, which involved a boy named by police as Lotus Bowker, 15, from Kirkham.
Shelby is now to receive a rarely awarded Royal Humane Society Silver Medal for her outstanding bravery and risking her own life in her fight to save the boy.
Andrew Chapman, Secretary of the Royal Humane Society. said: “What Shelby did was truly incredible for one so young.
“Sadly the boy died in hospital later but without doubt Shelby gave him the best possible chance of survival.
“Few people would have persisted in the way she did when they were so close to drowning themselves.
“Somehow though she stayed calm and showed incredible bravery. Very few people are awarded our silver medals but she richly deserves it. She was a true heroine.”