A teen who bravely rushed to help a man who was stabbed outside of her home in Luton has been recognised for her courage and quick-thinking at the St John Ambulance ‘Everyday Heroes’ awards.
On the evening of 2 November 2017, student Courtney Powdrill, then 15, watched as the young man was attacked by a group of youths.
Jumping into action, Courtney, who had received St John Ambulance first aid training via the Army Cadets, rushed towards danger and thankfully when she opened the door, the gang ran away. She swiftly discovered the man had been stabbed in the left calf and back in the brutal attack.
The 15-year-old shouted to her mum to call the emergency services and began to apply pressure to the man’s leg wound while also raising his legs to reduce blood loss.
She chose not to remove his tight-fitting jacket, which turned out to be the best decision as it was stemming the blood flow from his back wound.
When a passerby offered to help, Courtney asked them to support the man’s neck until the arrival of police and ambulance. She then gave emergency staff a full handover of the man’s condition when they arrived, and said he was also carrying a weapon.
“I was shocked and I didn’t know if it had actually happened,” Courtney told HuffPost UK. “It was like I was at the cinema or something.
“It was just instinct. I didn’t know if he had been stabbed, he was just lying on the floor.
“I ran outside and asked ‘are you OK?’ and that’s when he told me he’d been stabbed. I was talking to him, calming him down, while trying to help him. It happened really quickly.”
The man was transported to hospital with serious injuries, including to his spine, and that is the last Courtney heard of him.
The 16-year-old was a winner in the Guy Evans Young Hero category at the awards ceremony on Monday evening, where TV doctor and ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ star Dr Ranj Singh and former Sugababe Amelle Berrabah were in attendance.
The award recognises an extraordinary young person, under the age of 18, who has saved a life with first aid or has made an extraordinary first aid achievement.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing, I’m really over the moon,” Courtney said while clutching her award.
Her mum Michelle Powdrill said: “I’m extremely proud of Courtney. If it wasn’t for her going out to help him I don’t think anyone else would have gone out. So, although she doesn’t take the credit for saving his life, and that was down to the ambulance crew, I don’t think she realises what part she played.
“I think Courtney saved his life.”
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