A seven-year-old girl has been hailed a hero for rescuing a toddler from drowning after she fell into a public pool.
Phoebe Van Niel, a Year 2 student from Perth was holidaying with her parents at a hotel in Broome, situated in Western Australia's far north-west, when she witnessed the toddler accidentally falling into the pool.
The little girl was praised for her quick thinking, as she dived straight into the pool without hesitation, long before anyone else noticed the toddler was in distress.
The pool was crowded with people, however Phoebe managed to swim over to the child, lift her out of the water, and make her way back out of the pool, just as people started to realise she was in trouble.
On the incident, Phoebe told 9News : “She jumped into the big pool with no floaties. Well, she slipped in... She could have drowned and I didn't want that happening.”
Phoebe’s mother, Renae Van Niel admitted that the split-second move from her daughter left her in shock. She said: "Initially there was a lot of panic. But as soon as they sort of saw that, Phoebe had her out of the water and was swimming to the edge.
"Everyone was able to sort of relax a little bit knowing that she was going to be okay."
The toddler is reportedly fine after the incident, but was seen to be upset, shaken and crying as she was pulled to safety.
Phoebe discussed the importance of learning to swim. She attended years of swimming lessons at a pool in south Perth, leading her to be confident around water, which is something her mother couldn’t recommend enough.
Renae said: “This is why it's so important to go and learn to be a strong swimmer."
She has encouraged all families to teach their young children the life saving skill.
Phoebe has now says she wants to be a surf lifesaver when she grows up.
