Gary W. Patterson, 12, schoolboy, saved Marta S. Connelly, 8, schoolgirl, from drowning, Sturgis, South Dakoka, May 25, 1957. While playing along a creek, Marta, who could not swim, slipped and fell into the water, where there was a current of 4 m.p.h. Gary was attracted and, although slightly lame as the result of a polio attack eight years earlier, ran 150 feet along the opposite bank as Marta drifted with the swift current, submerging intermittently. He then entered the water fully clothed and swam 30 feet, reaching Marta 10 feet from the opposite bank in water five feet deep. Gary took hold of Marta and began towing her toward the bank as the current carried them farther downstream. After swimming and drifting 20 feet, Gary grasped a bush projecting four feet from the steep bank and with difficulty obtained footing. He then released his hold on the bush and thrust Marta toward the bank. Both Gary and Marta secured handholds on other shrubbery and pulled themselves from the water. Marta had swallowed some water, and Gary was slightly winded. Both recovered.
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