|
|
|
Hero of river rescue left his gas mask By Arthur Satchwell |
|
|
Reading about memories of Derby Central School prompted Jenny Brown, of Ockbrook, to ask her father, Albert, to re-tell an event that happened when he was a pupil there 50 years ago. In 1940 the school had been evacuated from Abbey Street to Darley Park and her dad was a 13 year old walking home from school. His way to Beaufort Street took him over St. Mary’s Bridge, in the days when the old canal used to join the River Derwent, and where the water was deep. |
 |
|
Suddenly he heard shouts from the passers-by who were pointing towards the water. A young boy had got out of his depth and was drowning. Dad ran down to the edge, stopping to kick off his shoes and drop his gas mask on the bank, and jumped in. The lad was unconscious by the time Dad reached him, but he managed to drag him to the bank where a gathering crowd pulled him out. The little boy was taken to the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary, but there was some confusion for a while when a policemen called at Dad’s house to say that HE was in the DRI, as his gas mask had been found on the bank where he had left it. The boy made a complete recovery and Dad became quite famous for a while, being hailed as a hero. He was awarded the citation on parchment of the Royal Humane Society, and was presented with it by the Mayor of Derby, Alderman A. T. Neal, surrounded by pupils of Central School. I wonder if anybody can remember this event? Derby Evening Telegraph. December 18th, 1990 |
|