Eline Rabbers from Nieuw-Amsterdam and Lieke Streutker from Groningen received a medal of honor today. The two did not hesitate for a moment when they saw a car driving into the water between Nieuw-Amsterdam and Nieuw-Schoonebeek. They immediately jumped after it to save the driver.
“I still don’t know exactly how it happened,” says director Jessica van Riet. “I am very happy with the girls and what they have done for me.”
It is one o’clock on Saturday 16 April 2022 when the emergency services receive a report of a car in the water. “I had a blackout and when I woke up I was in the water,” Van Riet remembers the moment. She does not know how she got into the water from the 80-kilometer road. “I’m especially glad I didn’t hit anyone else.”
Once in the water, she unfastens her seat belt and manages to open the window. “When I tried to climb out, my foot got stuck behind the wheel. Then I completely panicked.” Fortunately for her, help is already on the way. 25-year-old Lieke Streutker sees the car going into the water and jumps after it. “Everything went on autopilot,” she explains. “I guess I didn’t even really think, I just wanted to help.”
The Emmense Eline Rabbers also sees it happening. “I saw a lot of water splashing and then suddenly that car. I immediately called my brother to put the car aside.” The two of them help Van Riet out of the car and to the side. “Only then do you realize how cold the water is and that it could have gone wrong,” says Rabbers. “But we were especially happy that it ended well.”
The two women received a silver medal in the town hall of Emmen for their heroic deed. “You have to be sparing with the word hero, but if you save someone’s life, that word is more than appropriate,” says Henk Leegte, on behalf of the Royal Society for the Rescue of Drunks. The two received the medal of honor on behalf of this organization.