Mangaluru: A 16-year-old boy displayed extraordinary courage to save his 10-year-old cousin, who was swept away by waves at Someshwara beach.The incident occurred on Friday evening when a family outing to the beach turned tense. Mohammed Arshman, 10, who was at the beach with relatives, mostly women and children, was swept into the sea after slipping unnoticed into the waves. Without a second thought, his cousin Ismail Fahiz, who noticed this, jumped into the waters and struggled against waves for nearly 10-15 minutes to keep the Arshman afloat. Recounting the incident, Fahiz’s father, Ashraf Mudipu, said he was not present at the spot but later learnt about the ordeal. “My son was holding on tightly to his cousin and trying to keep him above water. The women present may have panicked, but two persons present there stepped in to help. A human chain with those present was formed, and shawls tied together were thrown towards them to pull them out,” he said. According to sources, Fahiz missed catching the shawl in his first two attempts. “On the third attempt, he managed to grab it while still holding the child. That is the last thing he remembers before losing consciousness,” Ashraf added. Both were eventually pulled to safety. While Arshman escaped without injury, Fahiz, exhausted and unconscious, was rushed to a nearby hospital and later shifted to another facility. He was kept under observation for 24 hours and has now been moved to a room. “We are hopeful he will be discharged by Monday,” his father said, adding he would try to find the locals who saved his son and go and thank them. Fahiz recently completed his SSLC examinations, scoring 509 marks, and aspires to pursue science in PUC.
