Teen girl helps save boy who fell in water in Burlington, NJ

A teenage girl and a boater jumped into action and saved a boy who fell in the Delaware River in Burlington City, New Jersey. 

The incident unfolded at the Burlington Boat Ramp on East Pearl Street around 2:50 p.m. on Friday, May 23. A spokesperson for Hamilton Karate Academy – a martial arts school based in Burlington – wrote that around 20 children were playing at the ramp when a 9-year-old boy fell into the water. 

As the children screamed for help, a 14-year-old girl – Nylah Bennett – ran to the boat dock from the basketball court. She then jumped into the water, swam to the boy and held onto him, preventing him from drowning. 

“They hadn’t quite told me he was drowning just yet. I didn’t know what was happening, but I knew something was wrong. So, I ran all the way to that basketball court over here. All I remember is, I just threw my phone and I didn’t stop running at all,” Bennett recalled.

"I really wasn’t thinking in the moment. I just knew in my mind, he’s drowning…I just dove right in there. When I had seen all of the commotion," she added. "I wasn’t thinking other than… save that little boy."

Police said a passing boater then arrived and helped bring Nylah and the boy back to safety. Neither Nylah nor the boy were injured, according to police. 

“He was getting ready to bring his own boat out. That’s when he had seen us. He came over to us and he told me to grab onto the boat. That’s what I did. I held on to the boat and had the boy in my arm. He had finally calmed down by then,” she said.

Bennett said that she checked the boy when they got to the boat, and that he did not have any water in his lungs.

"He ended up perfectly fine, not even a scratch," she said.

The event is still sinking in for Nylah, who told NBC10 that she was not thinking anything other than saving the boy at the time.

“I was shocked after it happened, because it all happened so quick. I wasn’t thinking. After it happened, I couldn’t believe it actually happened. I was shocked but thankful, me and him are both okay,” she said.

The teen said that she has been swimming since a young age, and was hoping to become a lifeguard when she turned 15, just like her mom was.

"She knows what she wants and she's eager to get it," said Andrea Milos, the teen's mother. "And she knows to never give up."

“I’m so proud of her. She came home and was like…‘Mom, don’t be mad. I lost my watch,' Milos added. "It died on her. I was like, ‘I’ll get you another watch. I’ll get you another pair of sneakers.’ It’s replaceable. That kid is not replaceable."

Burlington Police also noted Nylah's heroics.

“We commend the bravery displayed by the juvenile who acted without hesitation and express our appreciation to the boater who intervened,” a Burlington Police spokesperson wrote. 

The Hamilton Karate Academy spokesperson posted a photo of Nylah and thanked her for her actions on their Facebook page on Friday. 

Hamilton Karate Academy, Andrea Foster

Hamilton Karate Academy, Andrea Foster

“Thanks to Nylah’s swift response, strength, and bravery, what could have been a devastating tragedy ended safely,” the spokesperson wrote. “Nylah is also currently preparing for her Black Belt test at the Hamilton Karate Academy—and today, she showed the heart and discipline of a true martial artist.”

Making a change

Bennett said the she and her mom want to speak to the town's mayor to get a life-saving device in the water where the boy fell in.

"We've heard many stories, especially of younger kids, drowning in this river, and some dying," Bennett said. "Luckily, I was there, and not many other kids are going to have somebody who is going to always be there, like that little boy did yesterday."

"We were thinking, and we want to talk to the mayor, to see if we can have some sort life-saving floating device," she said.

For Milos, selflessness and helping others is something she is glad her daughter has taken on.

“I am a single mom raising my kid by myself. She helps me, I help her. It takes a village. My neighbors and everybody. We have wonderful people around us who makes her who she is today,” she said.