2 Montreal teens hailed as heroes for rescuing drowning couple in Barbados

Zoe Ireland-Meklensek, 13, and her friend Emma Bassermann, 14, were catching their last wave of the day on a Barbados beach last Wednesday when they heard something in the distance.

"I overheard a faint call for help," said Zoe.

Both teens are strong swimmers from Montreal, and what happened next earned them recognition as a pair of heroes. That faint call for help was from a woman who was drowning.

"So I went to her," Zoe said.

The woman was struggling in the current. She told the teen that her husband was farther out to sea, also struggling. They couldn't see anyone else was around, so Zoe swam out to the man, put him on her bodyboard, attached the strap to her ankle and began towing him.

"Thankfully, I had my Boogie Board," Zoe recounted to CBC News.

"I acted quick, and put them on my Boogie Board and I pulled them onto shore by swimming parallel to the beach."

Swimming parallel to the beach is a technique used to get out of strong currents and safely swim to shore.

Zoe said the adrenaline kicked in "so we weren't really thinking much except to get them to safety as fast as we could but I will say, well, I was pretty scared and worried about their safety and our own."

At first, the man didn't say much. Emma said he was breathing heavily, and couldn't really talk. Then, once they were on solid ground, she said, the British couple, both in their 60s, were grateful.

"They were thanking us so, so much," said Emma. "They were talking about how stressed they were and how they got pulled apart and how the ocean was really, really strong and the undertow took them out to the ocean."

The two teens were honoured by authorities in Barbados for swimming to action and saving a drowning couple. (Submitted by Michelle Ireland)

Emma is in Barbados for a swimming training camp, prepping for Olympic trials. Zoe's dad is her trainer and the  national development coach at the Dorval Swim Club, where the two teens have been involved as well.

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Since the daring rescue, the girls have been interviewed by Barbados media and honoured by a local politician. The teens were given gift bags as well.

But, Zoe said, it's something anyone would do under the circumstances:

"If you see someone in danger, you go out and you act on it and you help them," she said.

Back in Montreal, Emma's mother, Tara White, said her daughter is composed and it's not at all surprising that she raced to the rescue. Her daughter is always active in the water, and when they visit the beach, it's no different.

Kathryn Westoll, Dorval Swim Club vice-president, said the club is proud of the two girls for staying level-headed and saving the couple (Simon Nakonechny/CBC)

As parents, they've made an effort to teach about riptides before swimming or bodyboarding in the ocean, she said.

She found out about the rescue a couple of days later when her daughter, who is hoping to compete in the Olympics, let her know.

"She's the most determined kid that I know," White said. "She's been talking about the Olympics since she was six."

Kathryn Westoll, Dorval Swim Club vice-president, said Emma is still a group member and Zoe has been in the past. She said they go to Barbados to swim outside in 50-metre pools. Being outside changes the environment they train in, and it's away from parents and other distractions.

They get time to go to the beach and relax as well, she noted.

Westoll heard about the event through her own daughter, and she was very proud of Emma, whom she has known since the girl was five. She said she was impressed by how level-headed the two teens had been in the situation.

Beach swimming can be unpredictable, with strong currents, and saving panicking drowning victims comes with its own risks, but the two were able to keep themselves — and the couple — calm, she said.

"We're really proud," she said.