A four-year-old girl has been hailed as a hero by police after her mother allegedly had a seizure at home.
Quick-thinking Mya Bentley, from Hampshire, dialed 999 after her mother Rachael Lang, 25, was found unconscious on the floor of their hallway at their home in Hamble.
In the recording released today, the “impressive” youth can be heard asking a police call handler, “Can you help my mommy?”
Mya had learned about 999 at school the week before in October and was quietly putting her newly learned skills into practice when her father Chris Bentley, 27, was away for a week for work.
Mya Bentley, 4, from Hampshire is a hailed hero after calling 999 when her mother Rachael Lang, 25, was found unconscious on the hallway floor of their home in Hamble
In the recording released today, the “impressive” youngster can be heard asking a police call handler “can you help my mummy?” The mother has a functional neurological disorder, which causes stroke-like symptoms and seizures, and experienced an episode
The schoolgirl has always dreamed of becoming a police officer, and when she received a bravery certificate at a police station on Wednesday, December 21, all she wanted to do was become one.
Her mother Miss Lang fell to the floor in the downstairs hallway of their home in Hamble, near Southampton, Hants, at about 8pm one night in October.
Miss Lang suffers from a functional neurological disorder, which causes stroke-like symptoms and seizures, and experienced an episode.
Mya immediately dialed 999 and remained calm.
“I’m eating a little bit of my lunch,” Mya told the operator, before telling him that her mother was “on the floor.”
The schoolgirl has always dreamed of becoming a police officer
After receiving a certificate of bravery at a police station on Wednesday, December 21, all she wanted to do was become one more
Mya explained that her father was at work and tells the operator that her mother is asleep.”
‘Can you help my mom?’ you hear Mya ask, before she says to him ‘help my mom’.
Mya told them their home address, then stayed on the phone until the police arrived, then let them in.
Miss Lang said: ‘I suffer from a persistent neurological disorder, which I have had for about two years.
“Unfortunately I don’t remember much of what happened other than what the police and paramedics told me and a little bit of what Mya told me.
Mya tried to wake me up, but couldn’t. Oddly enough, Mya’s school had taught them about 999 just a week earlier. It was perfect timing because she knew exactly what to do.
“Of course I couldn’t remember what she said, but when I passed by, the police and paramedics said Mya had called them. I couldn’t believe it, I didn’t know she knew how to do that.
“I said, ‘Did my four-year-old call you on my phone?’ and they said ‘yes she did very well’ she could say our names and where we lived.
‘I’m really, really proud of her. I’m amazed she was able to do that and that she knew what to say and stayed so calm and didn’t panic.’
Miss Lang said she and partner Mr. Bentley, who works on environmental risk reduction, told Mya about her mother’s condition, but that she was able to acknowledge that it was more serious than usual.
“She realized this was unusual,” Miss Lang said.
Speaking of hearing the call for the first time, Miss Lang said, “It was a mixture of emotions, I was extremely proud and quite emotional.
“While she sounded confident and calm, I know there was a part where she was scared — when she said ‘can you help my mommy?’ I kind of got that.
“My favorite part is when she said she was eating her lunch — she was eating a sandwich and she gets confused between lunch and dinner.”
Police Inspector Paul Dawes, 45, who took the call, said: ‘For a four-year-old, she did so well. I was just doing my job, it was she who was so impressive for such a young girl’
Mya and Miss Lang visited the Hampshire Constabulary control room in nearby Netley today and were awarded a certificate for her bravery.
Miss Lang said, “She wants to be a police officer when she’s older. She’s always loved them, and this only made it stronger for her.’
Miss Lang added: ‘We spoke to Mya’s school about what she did and she got to stand in front of her class and tell them what she had done.
“I want to say a big thank you to the guy who answered the phone because he kept her calm and kept her on the phone. With four-year-olds, they can get easily distracted at times, so he did a really good job.
“I am so grateful for all the help from the police and ambulance.”
Police Inspector Paul Dawes, 45, who took the call, said: ‘For a four-year-old, she did so well. I was just doing my job, it was she who was so impressive for such a young girl.
‘I was a controller for thirteen years. It can be a rewarding career. It’s hard work, but when calls like this come in and we get a positive result, it’s all worth it.”