Drowning deaths in children are silent and happen all too frequently. This is something that Knoxville, Tennessee, mom Laura Forrester knows all to well. That’s because she nearly lost her 2-year-old daughter, Andie, to drowning.
The little girl had made her way into the family pool when her mother wasn’t looking and was struggling to stay afloat. Luckily, her 4-year-old brother, Gray, was paying attention and acted quick enough to save his little sister’s life, according to Today.
Forrester thought she had done everything necessary to prevent her children from ever even coming close to accidentally drowning. Upon moving into their home, the family had installed a fence around the pool so the kids couldn’t get in without parental supervision. The doors leading to the pool even beeped when they were opened, as an additional precaution. Little did she know that her 2-year-old would be able to get around the safety measures and manage to fall into the pool.
When Gray saw his little sister struggling to stay above the water, he didn’t hesitate before jumping in. He swam over to her and lifted her stomach up so that she could take a breath. He was miraculously able to get the little girl out of the pool without any assistance, ultimately saving her life.
Forrester recalls the terrifying moment when she realized what had happened and how close she had come to losing her daughter. The 2-year-old was able to tell her mother that her older brother had saved her life.
“Andie walked up and said, ‘I falled in the pool! I falled in the pool!’ She was soaking wet and I looked at Gray and he was soaking wet and I just panicked. It happened so fast, because they had just been with me not even five minutes ago.”
Gray, who is now 5-years-old, described what he did to assist Andie.
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“She was doggy paddling… I grabbed her tummy. I was trying to lift her so she could breathe,” he said.
Unfortunately, not every story involving children falling into pools ends as positively as this one.
As The Inquisitr previously reported, Olympic skier Bode Miller and his wife, Morgan, tragically lost their little girl, Emeline Grier Miller, in 2018 due to accidental drowning. Since their daughter’s death, the couple have dedicated themselves to spreading awareness about how quickly and silently a child’s life can be cut short due to drowning. They hope that their message will help other parents realize the importance of pool safety.