Giel van Kollenburg from Best rescued 90 -year-old Diny from a ditch close to his home in March this year. The Best municipality has now decided to award him with a bronze medal for this act of humanity.
The weather was bad when Giel returned from his soccer match. It had been raining for months on end and the water level in the ditches was high.
“I was driving through a street with little activity”, says Giel. “From my car I spotted a rollator on the foot path.That rang an alarm bell. I got out of the car to take a look and saw a woman lying in the water”.
Giel did not hesitate. He came to the rescue instantly. “She was lying on her back, her face just out of the water. Immediate action was called for. it was not easy to get her out because the bank was so slippery. When I finally managed to hoist her up I noticed she was carrying an alarm device around her neck. Under water the device did not work but once out of the water it worked again and the signal quickly brought the woman’s daughter to the scene”.
Tumble
The woman he rescued was 90-year-old Diny. She went for regular walks, putting her rollator against a tree to rest on when she got tired. This time she fell, and when she tried to get up she lost her balance and landed in the water.
Marianne van Laarhoven, Diny’s daughter, was already aware that her mother was experiencing difficulties because of the alarm device she was carrying. Together with her neighbour she started a search. “Through the alarm I could hear she had fallen into the water, but when the device was submerged I could no longer hear what she said. I rang my neighbour and we started off at once, but there are so many ditches around our house that it was not easy to know where to look”.
Hypothermia
Once Giel had managed to get Diny on the shore, her daughter got a second call through the alarm device. “I got over there as fast as I could. I saw my mother sitting on the bank, wet and muddy”, Marianne says. “I quickly helped her get into the car, drove her home and put her in the shower. Afterwards she sat in front of the fire for an hour before she was finally warm”.
In the spotlight
She is eternally grateful to Giel for what he did. “Who knows what might have happened. Other cars had driven past before Giel pulled over He was the one who got out and checked the area when he spotted my mother’s rollator and came to the rescue. Not everyone would have done what he did. My mother and I decided he had to get recognition for his act of humanity. It’s the least we can do.”
Marianne contacted Giel afterwards. “To thank me”, he says. “She told me what had happened before I found Diny and that she was doing a lot better. The medal is a kind gesture, but Giel really thinks they need not have taken the trouble. Of course you help a person in distress; a reward is not necessary”.
