A Cry For Help

It was 2 p.m. on January 22 and 87 degrees in the shade.

Sweat streamed down the face and body of William Ahiao as he sat at the controls of the big Priestman crane-excavator and dredged Rarotonga’s Avarua harbour.

This was part of the Avarua East Reclamation Project in which land is being reclaimed and the wharf extended to the east.

The nearby Takuvaine Stream, which empties thousands of tons of silt into the harbour after heavy rains, is to be diverted straight across the reef through a gut and its present exit into the harbour is to be filled in.

Heat and noise surrounded William Ahiao—the noise of the crane’s engine, the metallic clatter of a piledriver at work close to him, the shouts and laughter of children diving off the western wharf and swimming in the harbour. A Cook Islander in hh nud-thirt.es, he wished he could be swimmmg with the childre . .u Sudd K el !l y 3 nCW u a ? . w through the cacophony A cry for help. There were two boys swimmmg m the harbour near the reef passage and they were in trouble He jumped out of the cab, leaving the engine running and raced to the small beach, only yards away, where some outrigger canoes lay. The largest canoe, providentially, had a paddle in it.

As he paddled desperately for the boys in distress, one of the boys sank. William Ahiao, still wearing shorts and shirt, dived down after him. He grabbed the

drowning boy by the hair and hauled him to the surface. Then he cradled his head in his arm and held him against the side of the canoe until help arrived. The boy had cramp in both legs. The other swimmer, Mataio Theophilo, about 16, was not in distress, Back on shore, William dis covered he had saved Howard Henry, aged 16, the son of the Cook Islands’ Minister of Internal Affairs, Mr. T. A. Henry, and grandson of the Premier, Mr., Albert Henry. Howard was spendj n g hi s Christmas and New Years’ holidays with his parents before returning to school in NZ.

Harbour Projects Engineer, Mr. win(on H Ryan who witnessed (j, e en ti re incident from the wharf, said there was no doubt that Howard Henry would have lost hi , ;f t for the prompt ac(ion f wjlliam Ahiao . , . . , A/f . . . f A week later > the Mmister of Internal Affairs and Mrs. Henry made a presentation to WiHiam Ahiao on Avarua wharf. Work was stopped for a short ceremony witnessed by Mr. Ryan, foreman Rere Wichman, and 10 of Ahiao s workmates.

Mr. Henry expressed his and his wife’s deep gratitude to William Ahiao and said the Royal Humane Society would be told of his courageous act.