Young brothers awarded for emergency response to help injured grandma
A sleepover at their grandparents’ house turned into an emergency for brothers 13-year-old Eli and 11-year-old Ethan Bellegarde one Saturday night. When disaster struck, the boys didn't hesitate and quickly stepped in to help their grandma after a terrible injury.
A daily routine of getting tea and coffee before bed went horribly wrong for Eli and Ethan's grandma Robyn, who slipped on a wet surface at the top of the staircase.
What followed was Robyn unfortunately hitting her head and sustaining a severe leg wound that revealed her tibia bone. While the boys recalled their worry and sadness at the sight of their grandma in pain, that didn't stop their fight-or-flight response kicking in.
“There was this massive cut around her shin,” said Eli. “We first sat her down, because obviously we didn’t want her walking on it. It was really open; it was sort of like falling apart. The skin was really cut open, it was so deep."
Locating the first aid kit was the first step, before the brothers quickly yet calmly applied sterile bandages to the leg wound, techniques they learnt through completing their Bronze Medallion during VacSwim lessons.
Robyn was then rushed to hospital and taken to emergency surgery, with hospital staff later commending the boys’ work in bandaging up the wound.
"Funnily enough, we were in the same elevator as the nurse and surgeons that treated grandma’s leg. They said it was bandaged so well, it wasn’t too tight or too compressed onto the leg, so they were able to conduct a successful surgery", Eli said.
The Bellegarde Family The boys could consider taking up a career in emergency response after the incident, but the best news was that Robyn was able to make a full recovery.
For their tremendous courage and quick actions, Eli and Ethan both received a Gold Star Bravery Award at the 2023 Bravery Awards ceremony held at the State Reception Centre at King's Park earlier this month.
To learn more about the other recipients at this year’s Bravery Awards, follow the link below.