15-Year-Old Boy Hailed a Hero After He Dived Into a Canal to Save a Drowning Toddler

Illustration - Brian A Jackson/Shutterstock

A 15-year-old Brit boy has been celebrated as a hero and a “guardian angel” after diving into a canal to save a toddler from drowning.

On May 3, 2020, Ryley Ferguson was out walking his pet lurchers along the canal in the English town of Knottingley, West Yorkshire, when he noticed a child in distress on the opposite side of the bank. According to the Daily Mail, Ryley witnessed 15-month-old Reggie Hampton fall into the water.

At that time, the teen made a snap decision to rush to his aid.

The toddler had strayed from his backyard through a makeshift gate, unaccompanied, and onto the canal towpath. He ended up too close to the water’s edge and lost his balance.

“I could hear this little kid shouting and waving,” Ryley said, according to the Daily Mail. “I realized how young he was, and with him being on the other side I thought I need to go and get him or he’s going to go in.”

One moment, Reggie was playing in the grass. The next, Ryley recalled, the toddler fell into the water. “I saw his legs sinking,” said Ryley. “I threw my coat off and jumped in after him. When I got to him he was basically at the bottom of the canal.”

The teen, grabbing hold of the drowning toddler, reassured the little boy with the words “I have got you, you are going to be alright.”

Illustration - AndreyUG/Shutterstock

The teen managed to tread water and keep the panicked toddler above the surface of the water until two passersby, hearing Ryley’s cry for assistance, helped pull the teen and the tot from the canal to safety. “I was in the water shouting for help for about five minutes until two men came and helped me,” Ryley said.

Reggie’s mother, Becca, called Ryley a “guardian angel” after being reunited with her infant son. “It all went so quick to be honest,” the mom of two admitted. “One of the neighbors said to me, ‘Your boy is in the canal,’ and that was it. My heart ripped out.”

Becca later posted a photo of Reggie with his rescuer on Facebook, writing: “[T]his photo will be getting printed and put into a frame and put where Reggie can see it,” Becca continued, “so he knows who his guardian angel is.”

After Becca shared her gratitude to the brave and selfless teen, quickly people took to comment on her post, calling Ryley a “hero.”

“Saving this little boys life amazing your a true hero in our town,” one supportive local commented.

Ryley’s mother, Amy, 38, told news media that she was overwhelmed yet immensely proud of her son’s spontaneous actions. “He was brilliant,” Amy said.

Ryley’s equally proud father, Michael, 38, added, “If he had been seconds later that kid would have drowned and no one would have known where he went. He must have had somebody watching over him.”

News of toddler Reggie’s rescue soon reached some high-profile figureheads in the nearby city of Wakefield. Councillor Tom Gordon, having caught wind of Ryley’s bravery, praised the teen on behalf of his entire hometown.

“Our town is extremely fortunate to have a lad like Ryley,” Gordon said. “He’s a hero and he deserves to be recognized as such.”

On May 5, Gordon posted on social media to share Ryley’s bravery with his constituency. “Fantastic to see the response from residents who’ve got behind Ryley, set him up a GoFundMe page, and are now campaigning to nominate him for a Pride of Britain award,” Gordon wrote.

The courageous teen has since pledged to donate all raised funds on his GoFundMe page to the NHS. “Really, everybody is making a big thing about it but I only did what anybody would do in that situation,” Ryley said, according to the Daily Mail.

Ryley is now focusing on achieving an ambition of his own; to start an apprenticeship in electrical engineering.