It was a few years ago when a man named Paul was kayaking with his son, Joe, in the ocean near England. It was a bitterly cold day, but the father and son were accustomed to kayaking in cold weather and it’s a sport they enjoy doing together. However, on this day, their enjoyment of time spent together took on new meaning when 13-year-old Joe found himself in the position of having to save his own father’s life. About four hours after the two set off on their kayaking trip, a phone call came into the Royal National Lifeboat Institution that was concerning.
No one knew where Joe and Paul were. The RNLI is made up of unpaid volunteers who are known for their courage, and the team quickly sprung into action. When they learned that there was a child involved, their mission took on a new kind of urgency. Several members of the team were parents with children of their own, and one of them said that they could feel a lump in his throat just imagining what awaited them. They didn’t know if they were going to be bringing home living people or corpses, they said in an interview with BBC, describing it as a “game changer” once they knew a child was involved.
Little did they know that the child would be the one who was also a hero on that fateful day. The crew sailed through the depths of the sea that was near the outskirts of Anglesey’s Moelfre Island. One of the crew members recollects that he was in the wheelhouse getting information from the radio when a junior crew member shouted something from the top of the vessel. He said that he could see “somebody.” As it turns out, it was two exhausted and freezing but very much alive men on a nearby island. Two of the rescue volunteers jumped into a small lifeboat and headed that way.
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When the rescuers got to the island, they quickly assessed the father and son to see how urgent their needs were. One seasoned crew member said that it was one of the most severe cases of hypothermia that he has personally seen. As the crew members worked to help them warm up, a helicopter was standing by to airlift them to medical personnel who would evaluate them. That’s when Paul said that his young son had saved his life. Watch this dramatic rescue video below.
