Australia: Man rescued by eight-year-old boys

Two eight-year-old boys in a young lifeguards training programme rescued a man who was struggling in the ocean off Australia’s east coast.

Jake Satherley told Australian Broadcasting Corp radio that he and friend Spencer Jeams saw a middle-aged man in trouble on Sunday off Northcliffe beach, in Queensland state.

“We saw him put his hand up and saying ’help, help,’ so we went over to him and pulled him on our board,” Jake said.

The boys are part of the under-14 lifeguard training program at Northcliffe Life Saving Club.

Club president David Shields said he’d never seen a rescue like it.

“They really did perform well above their years,” he told ABC. “We’re just so proud of them and the way they acted instinctively.”

Nearly 50,000 Australian children ages five to 13 are enrolled in junior life-saving programmes, according to Surf Life Saving Australia.