Teen saves younger brother swept out to sea and becomes the youngest-ever recipient of Mountbatten Award

A boy turned into a superhero when his drowning brother needed him the most. This happened in New Zealand and the champ has been given the Mountbatten Award for his heroic act, as per Stuff. His name is Kalya Kandegoda Gamage and the 14-year-old teen shocked his mother when he saw his brother Kithmi being taken away by the sea waves that were around 3 meters tall last year. He said, "Ok Mum, I’m going out. I might not be back.’’ 12-year-old Kithmi can also swim well but he was swept out to sea when large waves broke off in Chrystalls Beach in South Otago. He was scared and exhausted but he was trying to get back to the land. However, he was around 180 feet of treading water in a "notoriously dangerous" patch of the coastal ocean, where, as per the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS), “no one survives."

Kayla was ready to save his brother and he jumped into the water and was easily able to reach his brother. But he was concerned about reaching the shore but they were able to do that safely. “Undoubtedly, Kalya’s brave response saved his brother’s life that day,” said the RLSS. "He tried to grab me, then I pushed him, then I told him to grab my shoulders and my shirt. So, we went to the shore safely," Kayla told RNZ Checkpoint. 

This learning saved Kayla's brother and made him win the prestigious Mountbatten Award in 2022. This award is really special as it is given to one member of the commonwealth each year for the most gallant rescue or attempted rescue. Kayla wants to be an engineer or a businessman when grown up. In his free time, he tries to improve his swimming skills.

His biggest reward will always be saving his brother. In another heartwarming story about saving lives, 5 brave individuals displayed unwavering determination as they rushed to rescue a child trapped in a blazing house. In that critical moment, their sole focus was the safety of the child and nothing else seemed to matter. In a video posted on Twitter by @GoodNewsCorres1, a child is seen stuck on a balcony of a particular floor of an apartment and black smoke is coming out of the building. A man gets onto a ladder and reaches the child and realizes that the balcony is closed from every side and he requires something to break it open.

Soon another man comes up and brings a tool to break the steel bars. However, that doesn't turn out to be much of a help. He is passed another tool that the man uses to push the steel bars to make space for the child. He is finally able to use that to weaken the steel bars on one side and another man uses the fire extinguisher in the same place. Finally, the steel bars break, and the men are able to pull out the child from the fire which seems to be spreading fast. It is a relief to see the child being rescued from such a dangerous situation. The fire took place in Zhejiang, Guangdong in China.