Constable Courtney Robertson with the women he helped rescue. Photo / Ten One Magazine
A police officer who rescued two deaf woman trapped in fast-rising floodwaters then put them up for the night has been described as a “humble hero”.
Constable Courtney Robertson came across the pair as he and other staff from across Taupō and Tokoroa responded to several vehicles stuck in flooding on State Highway 1 recently, the New Zealand Police’s Ten One Magazine reported.
Spotting the Mazda Demio “floating” in the water in the opposite lane, separated by a wire safety rope, Robertson wound down his window and attempted to yell to the occupants, but did not get any real response.
After wading into water up to his thighs to reach them, he learned the two women were profoundly deaf.
One was on a video call to her daughter, who explained their impairments and that one had recently had a knee replacement.
They were on their way to Hawke’s Bay from Auckland.
The passenger side of the car had water up to the windowsill and rising, but the woman was too terrified to get out of the vehicle.
“She was pretty traumatised by the whole situation, so I picked her up like a baby and managed to pass her over to Sergeant Symon Marama-Lyon who was on the other side of the road,” Robertson told Ten One Magazine.
Robertson and a “young fella, Ricky”, who had offered to help, managed to get the other woman out of the car and carry her to safety.
Robertson said the water was rising quickly as they got the two women out of the vehicle.
“If you were sitting in the car, it would have been mid-chest high,” he said.
“The passenger side of the road was pretty deep with a real current.”
They managed to get the car out of the water, then Robertson took the two rescued women to Taupō Hospital.
When they were released, he put them up in his mother’s house as she was away for the night.
“I just think about if it was my Mum or my Nana. It was really late at night and at least there they had beds and a dryer – all their suitcases were soaked.”
The next morning, while off duty, he checked on the women before cleaning and attempting to dry out of their sodden vehicle, which fellow police had driven back to Taupō.
“It was a good shift. That’s why we do the job right, to help people.”
Kelly, the daughter of one of the two rescued women, described Robertson as a “humble hero”, the magazine reported.
She said being in Auckland and receiving the Facetime call from her mother, frantically signing what had happened, was a scary moment.
“I just couldn’t believe it. Mum said she was in big trouble. I was trying to keep them both calm; neither of them were calm.”
The relief of seeing “red and blue flashing lights” as Robertson arrived was incredible, as was his extraordinary support that followed.
“I feel like what he did isn’t the norm. These were two vulnerable ladies. He’s part of the family now.”
Taupō Police area commander, Inspector Phil Edwards, said Robertson saw two vulnerable women in danger and did not hesitate.
“He just got in there and did what needed to be done.”
The care Robertson showed the women afterwards also stood out.
“This is exactly the sort of policing our community can be proud of,” he told the police magazine.
NZME asked police for the date of the incident and names of the women involved and pictured.
A police spokeswoman said details had been intentionally withheld in consultation with the parties involved, who did not want anything else shared in order to protect their privacy.