Eight-year-old girl is holiday lifesaver

A brave schoolgirl put her lifesaving skills into practice to rescue a drowning five-year-old while on a family holiday.

Annabella Whittaker, a pupil at Barnby Road Academy, Newark, was in a hotel pool when she spotted another girl who was in difficulty after removing her armbands.

Annabella, 8, of Newark, has been swimming for five years and learnt lifesaving skills in school swimming lessons.

She said she did not expect to have to put those skills to the test while on holiday.

She was a week into the holiday with her mother Nikki, father Adrian and sister Francesca, 4.

'The girl was really frightened.'

Annabella was in the hotel pool when she spotted a girl struggling and swallowing water.

Annabella said: “The girl was really frightened and I couldn’t leave her in the pool on her own.”

The pool, at the Banana Apartments, near Marmaris, Turkey, was too deep for young children to stand up.

Nikki said: “Annabella is a competent swimmer. She was in the pool and I was by the pool.

“The other girl took her armbands off and was drowning. She was under the water with her eyes open.

“Annabella got a rubber ring, swam up to the girl and pulled her up inside the ring.

“She held on to her until she got to the side of the pool.”

'Her mum was really grateful.'

Nikki said the girl was under-water for about 20 seconds before Annabella spotted her.

She said the girl had taken her armbands off when no-one was looking.

“Her mum was really grateful and she doesn’t know what she would have done without Annabella,” said Nikki.

“Annabella definitely saved the girl’s life because she was swallowing water and choking.”

Annabella has been congratulated by her swimming teacher, Sandra Bamber, of JSB Swim.

Nikki said: “Our aim is to teach Annabella to swim so she can swim for safety.

“I did not think she would be putting her lifesaving skills into practice.

“She was amazing. She was brave and didn’t think about herself — she was just off and saved the girl.

“The fact she did it at her age is amazing. It was like it was happening in slow motion.”