A TEN year-old Newtownards girl has been praised for showing ‘bravery far beyond her years’ after a serious car accident on the outskirts of the town.
Young Willow Close took charge after her mother was knocked unconscious in a crash on the dual carriageway to Bangor, caring for her mum and young brother and summoning the emergency services.
All three have recovered after the accident but Willow’s mum, Linda, has said the family are so proud of the bravery the Victoria Primary School pupil displayed on the day.
The accident occurred on Saturday, January 27, as Linda (35) was taking Willow and her seven year-old brother Cooper to Bangor for a special day out.
As they approached the turn off to Conlig a car pulled out in front of their car causing an unavoidable collision.
Linda was knocked unconscious by the explosive power of the airbag of her Seat Leon car, and when she came to, she watched her young daughter ‘take control of everything’.
Not only did she look after her mother, who was left completely dazed by the crash, and her brother, she fetched her mum’s phone from the family’s destroyed car and immediately summoned the police and an ambulance.
Willow’s dad Dean Ruberry was soon on the scene, as well as the emergency services, who all marvelled at the bravery of the little girl who turned 11 two days later.
Proud mum Linda told the Chronicle it was to be a ‘special girl’s day out’ with Willow when the accident occurred.
“She had just had her birthday party the night before, a disco with her friends, and then a sleepover and then she got her SEAG results (formerly AQE),” said Linda. “She didn’t get the results she was hoping for so I wanted to give her a nice day.
“I organised a wash and a blow dry for her at a salon in Bangor and we were on our way from Newtownards. We were going to leave Cooper off at a birithday party, and we were just near the junction at Conlig when a car came up the slip-road and pulled right out in front of me,” she recalled.
“The impact was absolutely incredible and I was knocked out from the force of the airbag; it was like an explosion. I came to hearing Cooper screaming in the back and Willow’s voice asking me if I was OK.
“We walked over to the island at the junction to wait and I could barely string a sentence together. But then I was saying I had to go back to the car to get my phone, but Willow said ‘I have your phone’ and was already on to the emergency services.
“She said ‘mummy you need an ambulance’ and was on the phone ringing them. She just totally took control of the situation and was so totally in control.”
“I was still so dazed when they arrived I couldn’t even tell the ambulance men the kids’ dates of birth,” she added.
Willow, who had been seated in the front on a booster seat, sustained a black eye from the force of her airbag and bruising on her chest from the seatbelt. Her little brother suffered similar injuries in the back seat.
Linda was treated at the Ulster Hospital but was released without serious injury, apart from back pain.
“Willow asked me later if I remembered screaming just before the impact and I hadn’t, but then it came to me that just before we hit, I screamed ‘no, no, stop stop!’,” she said.
Dealing with the car crash was not the first time Willow has come to her mum’s aid.
When she was just four years of age she had to phone the ambulance after her mother had a bad medical episode as a result of gall bladder problem which required hospital treatment.
“She just grabbed my phone and rang 999 and asked if someone could send an ambulance.”
“It was her bravery that I wanted to highlight. I just wanted her to know how proud we are of her, her dad and her little brother too, for how well she tackled the situation and took control of everything.”
“I don’t think she is aware of what she has done,” said the proud mum. “I think it was a massive thing to do and I’m very, very proud of her.”
Linda said her daughter’s courageous actions stem from ‘a very caring nature’.
Faithe Moffett, principal of Victoria Primary School agreed, also heaping praise on her school pupil.
“We are incredibly proud of Willow and how brave she has been,” said Ms Moffett.
“Many adults would have panicked in the same situation but she remained calm and level headed throughout. As her mum lay injured on the side of the road, she called the emergency services.
“We think she was incredibly brave and would love her to get some recognition. Willow is a huge credit to her family and to our school.”
