A BRITISH teenager braved a rough Limassol sea to rescue two young children from drowning last week.
Amy Benfield, 17, an employee at Elias Beach Hotel in Limassol, had been taking a swim at the hotel’s beach on Wednesday when she saw the two children having difficulty in the water.
The children – a boy and a girl – had been struggling to reach the shore, but were continually forced back by the tide. Benfield fortunately heard their cries for help, seeing their heads repeatedly disappear beneath the high waves.
“They were behind the pier near to the rocks. The water kept dragging them back and forth, and it looked like they were about to be thrown on to the rocks,” Benfield said yesterday.
She added that the children, who were not guests of the hotel, looked to be about nine or ten years old, with the girl a little bit younger.
It was lucky for them that Amy was in the water, as their location would have made it difficult for their parents or any one on shore to hear their pleas for help.
“Their parents weren’t able to see them, because they were at the other end of the pier. You’d only have been able to see them if you were in the water,” said Amy.
The young hotel employee swam out immediately and managed to grab hold of the terrified children, who were still screaming in Greek. Despite the shock, the girl managed to say “thank you” to Amy several times as they swam closer to shore.
“It’s exhilarating,” said Amy of the experience, “It’s a nice feeling, not a situation or feeling you deal with everyday.”
Amy, who hails from the Manchester area and attended Crossley Heath School, works at the hotel as an animator involved in engaging both children and adults in various games and activities, such as table tennis. She will be leaving the island when her contract ends on October 31.
Hotel staff members are said to be very pleased with having the children’s rescuer among their employees, with the hotel’s executive secretary Rena Georgiou reportedly calling Amy a “hero”.
But Amy is not looking for recognition, simply stating: “I’m glad I could be of help to them.”
Amy said that the relieved parents had asked for her telephone number after the ordeal, and that she hoped to hear how the children were doing soon.
