A 4-year-old boy is recovering after he was pulled from the Li River in Guilin Province by a triathlete and trained swimming teacher on holiday with his family. The boy was given CPR at the scene and transported to hospital where he was expected to make a full recovery.
On Saturday 24 July, Thomas Hitchings, Director of Sport and Assistant Head Teacher at The British International School Shanghai, was checking out of his hotel, ready to depart for the airport. Then someone burst into the lobby and screamed that a child was drowning in the nearby river.
“I went into autopilot and knew I could help”, said Hitchings, who sprinted to the scene, made a quick assessment of the water’s safety before entering, and swam to the boy who was face down about 40 metres from shore.
“When I reached him, he wasn’t moving and his face and limbs were blue. My lifesaving training kicked in and I checked for a pulse whilst trying to wake him. Thankfully, he had a weak pulse, but I needed to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to restart his breathing. This worked quickly and he regained consciousness after a fountain of water came out of his mouth.”
When conscious, the disoriented boy began struggling against his rescuer, a common reaction known as instinctive drowning response.
“The boy was very distressed and it took a lot of energy to keep us both afloat, while his fight response relaxed. This is a normal reaction and totally understandable, given the last thing he will remember was drowning. This is what makes water rescues so dangerous and why we are taught to only enter the water as a last resort.”
As Hitchings swam closer to shore, he was able to reach a floatation device brought out by hotel staff members and other tourists.
“By the time I reached the rescue buoy, my body was completely exhausted. Performing CPR while treading water and then trying to hold on to the boy while he’s struggling to get away used up all my energy.”
When on shore, the boy was given additional aid to remove water from his lungs and stomach. A driver from the hotel then rushed him and his mother to the local hospital.
Hitchings was thrilled that the boy was expected to make a full recovery and hopes this experience inspires parents to encourage swimming lessons for their children at an early age.
“At the international school where I work, we give weekly swimming lessons to children as young as 2-years old. Not only is it a great way to stay in shape and have fun in a safe environment, learning to swim could someday save a life… including your own.”
