Georgia Laurie: Twin who fought off crocodile to save her sister receives royal bravery award

CNN
—

Three years ago, British twin sisters Georgia and Melissa Laurie were enjoying a hot day on vacation in Mexico in June, swimming in a river in Puerto Escondido, when Melissa spotted a crocodile in the water nearby, panicking settled and they began to swim desperately.

Georgia reached the shore, but as Melissa was pulled on by another member of the group, the crocodile reappeared and dragged her underwater.

Georgia, now 31, dove into the water and twice fought off the reptile to save her twin sister, an extraordinary act of bravery for which she is now awarded the King’s Medal of Bravery. The King Charles III Award recognizes acts in which civilians put their lives at risk in an attempt to save someone else.

It is a “ray of hope to have come out of this terrible ordeal,” Georgia told the British news agency PA Media. “It kind of softens the whole traumatic experience.”

“What made this story so incredible was Melissa’s unwavering courage throughout this story because she was so strong and I don’t think I would be here without her, she really gave me the strength to continue fighting,” she added.

For both sisters, the scars from that day persist. Georgia first found Melissa floating unconscious face down in the water and resuscitated her before the crocodile returned and attacked again, according to a press release issued Tuesday by the British Cabinet Office.

At first, Georgia managed to fend off the animal, hitting it with one hand while keeping her sister’s head above water with the other, but the crocodile returned a third time.

This time, the reptile threw Melissa to her death – a maneuver in which a crocodile turns on its prey in an attempt to drown it – but Georgia managed to hit her, the statement added.

She suffered bites to her hand, but the impact was violent enough that the crocodile eventually released her sister.

A passing boat rescued them from the water, but there was still a 25-minute ride to shore and a 20-minute ride to the hospital, during which time “Melissa fought her own battle for survival.” , the twins said on their JustGiving page.

Melissa was left with a complicated compound fracture of her wrist, severe puncture wounds to her stomach, intestines and intestines as well as several bites to her leg, foot and buttocks, according to the JustGiving page. She underwent emergency surgery before being placed in a medically induced coma. She developed sepsis in hospital but eventually made a full recovery, the page adds.

Now Georgia and Melissa are preparing to tackle the Thames Marathon – a 13 kilometer (8 mile) swim in one of the UK’s longest rivers – in August to raise money for PTSD UK and Compañeros En Salud, a Mexican charity that provides aid and medical training to poor communities in Chiapas.

“The further away it gets, the less real it seems,” Georgia added.

“Because when you think about it, it seems like a horror movie, but it’s part of our life, it’s part of the tapestry of our life.”