About eleven o'clock on the morning of the 10th June, 1962, Harry Christopher Duffy, a fourteen-year-old boy, heard two girl swimmers who were in the sea off Lake Pier, Hamworthy, Dorset, shouting. He was canoeing with other members of the Hamworthy Ad- venture Centre and called to his in- structor. It did not seem to the instruc- tor that anything was amiss, but Harry Duffy was not satisfied, and he paddled towards the girls, who were some dis- tance away. There was a moderate off- shore wind at the time and the sea was choppy. The tide was just beginning to flood.

Hung on to Canoe The two girls were sisters, Valerie Ridgley, aged eleven, and Hazel Ridgley, aged eight. As the boy approached them he sounded the depth of the water with his seven-foot six-inch paddle, but could not touch bottom.

He first approached the younger girl, Hazel Ridgley, and told her to hang on to the stern of his canoe, and in this way he brought her inshore until she was able to wade. He then returned to the older girl, who was supported by an in- flated plastic ring. When he reached her he found Valerie Ridgley helpless and floating with her head in the water. He lifted her head out, but found he could not make any progress against the off- shore wind. Mr. Roger Towler then came to his help in a 16-foot outboard runabout. Together they succeeded in bringing the girl ashore. Another man, Mr. John Edwards, waded into the water to help.

When Valerie Ridgley was brought ashore her father tried to revive her by the mouth-to-mouth resuscitation sys- tem, and when an ambulance arrived she was given oxygen. She was then taken to Poole General Hospital, but was found to be dead on arrival.

At the inquest on Valerie Ridgley, H.M. Coroner said that had Harry Duffy not done his utmost there would have been a double tragedy. He added: "I think for a boy of fourteen to decide what to do and the way in which he carried out what he decided is worthy of much commendation".

For this service an engraved wrist- watch has been awarded to Harry Christopher Duffy..