Galashiels young carer Abi Wardle awarded heroism prize
A teenage carer has received an award for heroism, after saving the lives of her mother and younger brother.
Abi Wardle, 16, from Galashiels, was given The Annie Dow Heroism Award (TADHA) and £2,500 in Edinburgh on Thursday.
She was nominated after both her mother and brother collapsed with breathing problems within days of each other.
Having recently completed a first aid course, the young woman knew exactly how to react.
She performed CPR on her mother, Lisa, until the paramedics arrived. When her brother, Ben, collapsed she put him in the recovery position and unblocked his airways.
Since then they have both been diagnosed with whooping cough.
'Calm under pressure'
Abi was nominated by Jo Glover, co-ordinator at Action for Children's Scottish Borders Young Carers service. She said: "On top of her heroic actions, Abi is also a carer for her dad, Peter, who has cancer.
"She is a truly remarkable young woman and I wanted her to know just how much her heroic actions mean to both her family and the local community."
TADHA founder Sophie Dow said: "We believe that the true definition of a hero is someone who can stay calm under pressure, in a crisis or an emergency, knows what to do and does it well without panicking.
"Abi Wardle did just that. Without her heroic actions, her mother and brother simply wouldn't be here today."
Abi said she was "over the moon" to win the award. She added: "I'm so glad that I did that first aid course as it meant that when mum and Ben collapsed, I knew exactly what to do and didn't even need to think about it."