Brave 11-Year-Old Avory Woolery Rescues Drowning Man in Kentucky

An 11-year-old from Kentucky, Avory Woolery, is currently receiving widespread acclaim for his courageous act of plunging into a swimming pool to save a man from drowning, a feat no other bystander attempted. The incident unfolded at an apartment complex pool in Lexington around 8 p.m. on Wednesday, July 1.

Woolery recounted to local news outlet WKYT how he noticed the unidentified man submerged underwater and immediately felt compelled to intervene. “I was like, somebody’s gotta do something. No one was doing anything, so I put on my goggles. I went underwater. I grabbed him up,” he explained. The young boy described seeing the man "unconscious under the water, almost shaking," which triggered his "adrenaline." He further emphasized his resolve, stating, “There was no way that I was going to let another man die today. He’s a human being. He should be treated as such.”

Following Woolery's swift action, another individual present at the pool assisted in pulling the victim from the water onto the pool deck. There, efforts to resuscitate him commenced before emergency services arrived. Woolery recalled, “His friend, I believe, put him on the floor and started doing CPR on him to try and save him the best he could, until somebody called 911.”

The Lexington Fire Department confirmed to WKYT that the man was transported to a hospital in serious condition. However, specific details regarding his injuries were not disclosed, and his status as of Friday, July 3, remained unknown. The boy's extraordinary bravery has since garnered immense praise across social media platforms, with one Facebook user commenting, “What a very brave young man!!”