GRAFTON, MASS. (WHDH) - A scary situation had a happy ending in Grafton last week after a 13-year-old girl jumped into action to rescue a 35-year-old man who was drowning in a neighborhood pool.
Just under one week after the rescue, Reet Dhillon spoke to 7NEWS about the moment she jumped into action.
“Someone came running and told us that someone in their pool was drowning,” Dhillon said. “I didn’t have time to second guess what I was going to do.”
Dhillon was playing a game of pool volleyball in her own pool immediately before the rescue. She said she heard a commotion nearby and took off running once she heard calls for help.
She said she found a chaotic scene at the second pool and saw a man motionless at the bottom.
“I saw him and he was completely faced downward and…I couldn’t see his face at all,” Dhillon said.
A strong swimmer, Dhillon immediately dove in and swam eight-feet down.
She said she grabbed the man by his arm and used her legs to push off the bottom of the pool. She said she used a free arm to swim upward.
After onlookers performed CPR, the man started breathing on his own. He later made a special visit to Dhillion.
“It was really nice,” she said. “I saw his wife and his child as well. He got me flowers too. It was just a really nice moment because I actually saw that he was alive.”
Dhillon’s family said she is being recognized by Gov. Maura Healey. Her family said Grafton’s police chief will also be honoring her later this week.
Grafton Police Chief Normand Crepeau confirmed a drowning incident took place on June 19 near 5:45 p.m. Crepeau said the man who was rescued was released from an area hospital on June 20.
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