Wiltshire boys urge knowledge of emergency skills after mountain biking accident
Henry acted when his friend Dom had a crash whilst on a mountain bike trail
Two Wiltshire boys are urging other youngsters in the county to be up to speed with how to deal with an emergency, in case they find themselves needing to contact emergency services over the summer holidays.
Henry, 15, was forced to take action when his friend Dom, 12, had an accident whilst they were mountain biking earlier this year.
The pair, who've been friends for some time, both enjoy getting out on their bikes and taking on the trails. They'd embarked on a new one when Dom had his accident.
"I was going too fast, lost control. braked too hard, flew over my handlebars, hit my head on the ground, and the bike landed on top of me," he explained.
Henry said he wasn't worried at first, as "everyone crashes" at some point when mountain biking: "I thought it would be just another crash where, you stop mountain biking for that day, have a week off, and then maybe go back the next week or week after."
But after checking on his friend, he realised this wasn't one of those occasions.
"He was semi-responsive. So I flagged down two dog walkers, put him in the recovery position, covered him in more layers to keep him warm, and called the 999," he told us.
With the help of the dog walkers, Dom was put into the recovery position and covered in layers to keep him warm.
How three words can help in emergencies
Henry was able to give the Air Ambulance crews the exact location using the what3words app.
The app divides the world into small grids and gives each one a series of words with which they can be identified. This can be given to the emergency services to guide them to a location and save vital time.
Henry, who learnt his skills with the scouts, told us it's crucial that others understand what to do in those situations.
"It could be literally anything, walking, riding a bike, swimming, anything could happen," he said. "I think it's really important that you know even the basics, like what I did wasn't anything really advanced, it was basic stuff, but it goes a long way and it's really useful to know how to deal in those situations."
Dom, who said he is grateful to his friend for his knowledge and actions said: "Just keep calm, learn the basic emergency skills, calling 999, your What3Words and your home address. Use the What3Words app, it's easy to use."
Since the accident, Dom has made a full recovery and the pair are set to take on more trails on their bikes this summer.