An 11-year-old Afghan girl was in danger of drowning in Steyr in Upper Austria when she was swept away by the currents of the Enns River. FP politician Helmut Zöttl heard cries for help and was prepared.
On a sunny Tuesday, Helmut Zöttl from Steyr alarmed a loud scream – and a few minutes later, the 51-year-old deputy mayor of the FP became a lifesaver. “I happened to be at home and immediately checked what was going on. Then I saw that a child, a girl, was floating around in the Enns,” said the city politician a little later in the “Krone” interview. The eleven-year-old had been playing with other children near Zwischenbrücken, where the rivers Steyr and Enns meet, and she was probably caught in the strong current and unable to stand on her feet.
Once he couldn’t help it
“She clearly couldn’t swim,” reports Zöttl, who immediately ran to the garage to get a throwing bag hanging from a 20-meter line. It has always been there since the Steyrer got into a similar situation years ago. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t save the person at the time, she drowned.”
This time he was prepared and ran down the River Enns with the throwing bag onto the local wharf and tossed it at the girl floating by. “I would have jumped in it too, but the throwbag is a better option if it works.”
“She was completely exhausted and crying”
And it worked, the girl grabbed the rope and Helmut Zöttl managed to pull her to the bank with the help of a Romanian (34) and to lift the steep slope. “She was completely exhausted and cried, wanted to go to her mother,” says the FP city politician, who then left the situation to the police and the Red Cross. The good news from the rescue: The girl was shocked but otherwise unharmed. “I’m just glad the rescue was successful, because the girl couldn’t have stayed afloat much longer,” says Zöttl.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
