A woman in Winnipeg has been recognised for her bravery after she leapt into the Red River to rescue a young girl and her father who were struggling to stay afloat. Jaclyn Morrissette’s prompt actions are being celebrated by the local community following the incident that occurred recently at St. John’s Park.
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Emergency services received a call shortly before 7 p.m. on August 24, alerting them to a child who had fallen into the river. When officers arrived at the scene, they found that a bystander, identified as Morrissette, had already entered the water to help the girl. She was providing aid even before the emergency services could arrive.
Morrissette explained that she was out for a walk with her neighbour when she spotted the girl in distress. “We looked for the parents,” she stated. “We saw them over on the park playground area. They were looking for her as well, so we had called for them to come over.” After they alerted the parents, Morrissette followed them toward the water, determined to assist.
Before she could jump in, however, the girl’s father had already taken the plunge. According to Morrissette, he made a dangerous leap into the water from a significant height. “Where he had jumped, it’s like a seven, maybe eight-foot drop just straight down,” she recalled. “When I saw he didn’t come up, I knew I had to go in.”
Morrissette dove into the river to rescue the pair. She discovered that the father was panicking and inadvertently putting both himself and his daughter at greater risk. Alongside her neighbour and a member of the father’s family, they managed to pull the father to safety, but the girl remained submerged in the water.
“I kicked it into overdrive to get her,” Morrissette recalled, expressing the urgency of the situation. Upon reaching the girl, who was unresponsive, she immediately performed life-saving measures. “I flipped her onto her back and I put her on my chest and I started swimming backwards,” she said. While swimming, she also applied pressure to her stomach to expel any water.
After reaching the bank, Morrissette began administering CPR on the girl. Her neighbour took over moments before the police arrived at the scene. The young girl, whose name and age have not been disclosed, was transported to a local hospital in critical condition, but has since stabilised and is expected to make a full recovery.
Morrissette expressed profound relief upon hearing of the girl’s recovery, stating, “When I heard that, my heart skipped a beat and I started crying.” She added that her instinct to save the child was immediate, revealing, “If the father hadn’t gone in the water, I still would have. My first instinct was to save her.”
Despite her extraordinary actions, Morrissette remains humble, insisting she does not see herself as a hero. “I’m just a mum,” she expressed to reporters. Even though she sustained injuries to her neck and shoulder during the rescue, she was unaware of the pain until afterwards, when the adrenaline had worn off.
Winnipeg police have praised Morrissette’s courage and selflessness. Constable Claude Chancy remarked that her quick thinking averted a tragic outcome, describing her efforts as both heroic and commendable. “The fact that she entered the water, saved one person, went back in without regard for her own life—that is truly heroic,” he noted.
In light of these events, the Winnipeg Police Service has reminded residents about the importance of keeping a watchful eye on children and practising safety measures around parks and waterways. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the potential dangers associated with such areas, as well as the extraordinary lengths to which individuals will go to protect others in perilous situations.