WATCH: Sheriff awards group who saved girl from septic tank.
CALGARY- A southern Alberta woman is being honoured after helping save the life of a two-year-old girl.
On Saturday morning, the toddler was chasing her dog in a dirt area near a Farmer’s Market in Maricopa, Arizona, when she stepped on a septic tank cover. Her weight, combined with cracks in the cover, prompted it to flip open and she fell inside and began drowning in the sewage.
The girl’s mother began screaming for help, and several Good Samaritans ran over, including 28-year-old Chelsea Cunningham from Sundre, Alberta, and two other young men.
“I heard some lady yell ‘my baby, my baby,’” says Henry Ricketts, who jumped into the nearly two-metre deep tank head first. “I just got in right away.”
He and another man began swimming around in the raw sewage trying to find the girl. One of them finally felt her hair, about four minutes after the girl fell in. They managed to pull her out and hand her up to Cunningham, who started performing CPR.
Finally, the toddler started breathing again and began to cry. Paramedics arrived at the Farmer’s Market, and rushed her to hospital. She is expected to make a full recovery.
“These three heroes risked their own safety to intervene and save the life of a complete stranger who happened to be a young child,” said Sheriff Paul Babeu. “Had it not been for these three heroes, the young child would have certainly died.”
The trio will be honoured with a ‘Life-Saving Award’ on Tuesday, where the girl and her family will be able to thank them in person.
“I was proud to be in their presence,” adds Fowler. “To know that people come together like that, it’s astounding.”
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