Georgia Laurie: The twin who fought a crocodile to save her sister receives a Royal Bravery Award

CNN
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British twin sisters Georgia and Melissa Lowry were enjoying a hot June day Mexico On vacation three years ago, while swimming in a river in Puerto Escondido, when Melissa A crocodile In the nearby water, panic set in and they began desperately swimming away.

Georgia reached the bank, but while another member of the group was pulling Melissa to it, the crocodile appeared again and pulled her underwater.

Georgia, 31, plunged into the water and fought a crocodile twice to save her twin sister – an act of extraordinary bravery – and she is now receiving the King’s Gallantry Medal. The King Charles III Award recognizes actions in which civilians put themselves in danger in an attempt to save another person.

Georgia told the British news agency PA Media that coming out of this terrible ordeal was a “silver lining.” “It kind of alleviates the whole painful experience.”

She added: “What made this story so amazing was Melissa’s unwavering courage throughout it all because she was so strong through it and I don’t think I would be here without her. She really gave me the strength to keep fighting.”

For the sisters, the scars of that day still remain. Georgia initially found Melissa floating unconscious face down in the water and revived her before the alligator returned and attacked her again, according to a Tuesday press release from the UK Cabinet Office.

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

This time, Melissa did the reptile death roll — a maneuver in which a crocodile rolls with its prey in an attempt to drown it — but Georgia managed to punch her, the statement adds.

She sustained injuries to her hand, but the impact was strong enough that the alligator eventually released her sister.

The twins said on their JustGiving page that a passing boat rescued them from the water, but they still had a 25-minute trip to the beach and a 20-minute trip to hospital, during which time Melissa “fought her own battle for survival.”

Melissa suffered a complex fracture to her open wrist, severe lacerations to her abdomen, stomach and intestines, as well as several injuries to her leg, foot and buttocks, according to the JustGiving page. She underwent emergency surgery before being placed in a medically induced coma. The page added that she contracted sepsis in the hospital but eventually fully recovered.

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

“The further away you get, the less real it feels,” Georgia added.

“Because when you think about it, it sounds like a horror movie, but it’s part of our lives, it’s part of the fabric of our lives.”