я╗┐Jake Gilbert was riding his bike with a friend when he unwittingly cycled over a submerged drain and was sucked 10 metres under the road in Altona last Thursday afternoon.
“I can’t believe that happened to me … how have I survived,” Jake said today.
The schoolboy managed to grab a metal grate on the other side of the road я╗┐when passerby Justin Costello, who is coincidentally a State Emergency Service member, rushed to help.
He called police and started removing the bolts from the grate Jake was clinging to.
Constable Peter Ivory arrived on the scene and with other officers helped pull the grate off and get Jake out as he became fully submerged. я╗┐
Jake was taken to hospital but was stable.
The forceful flood waters also washed я╗┐Jake’s friend off his bike, but he managed to brace himself before getting sucked into the drain.
He reunited with his rescuers today and expressed his gratitude for those who saved his life. я╗┐
“я╗┐It feels good to actually be able to meet the people who rescued me in person,” Jake said.
Ivory praised Jake’s resilience and strength for coming out of the potentially deadly situation.
“It’s good to see him in the family and how happy they are that everything went well,” Ivory said.
“It was a very intense situation.”
The 11-year-old was also presented with a new bike, to replace the one lost in the floodwater. я╗┐
