Julien, 12, saves an entire family from drowning

This is a summer that Julien will remember all his life. Originally from the Paris region, the 12-year-old teenager usually spends his summer holidays in Biarritz, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques. On the program, many activities at sea, such as bodyboarding. And it was while he was practicing this water sport, which resembles surfing but is practiced on a shorter and more flexible board, that he had a heroic gesture, Sunday August 7, 2022, after hearing cries and calls help from afar. “At first I thought it was a jokeand the closer I got, the more I saw that they were in danger”thus entrusted the young man to RMCTuesday, August 9.

As he gets closer, Julien then discovers a drowning family of five. Clinging to a rock, he sees a mother and two children, her nephew and her niece, both hearing impaired, while next to them a 6-year-old child and his father try to stay out of the water. , despite their numb legs. “It was a bit hectic in my head, because I didn’t know how to handle this“admitted Julien to RMC, specifying that “in the end, it went well”. Fortunately, the 12-year-old teenager had, a few days earlier, completed a coastal rescue course which he was able to put into practice in a real situation. “I was taught to bring back people who were drowning, so I applied this technique while waiting for the rescuers, I brought them back as much as I could”he said, adding that he first got the two people who were in the water on his board.

“They took me in their arms”

Helped by other people, Julien was able to bring the family back to dry land, while his “board was tied to a rope” because of the current, very strong that day. A big fright for these vacationers, who did not fail to warmly thank their rescuer. “They thanked me and hugged me. They were very happy”, concluded the young man. During the summer of 2021, 1,480 accidental drownings were recorded. A figure down 10% from that of 2018, which held the record for all investigations with 1,649 drownings.