A 12 year girl in Massachusetts saved her friend’s life with techniques acquired in an unlikely place.
Mackenzie George was playing in a marsh with friends during a sleepover on June 3rd. The girls decided to venture into the marsh behind one of their houses. Mackenzie slipped and ended up with a gash in her calf from old metal that was hidden by the water.
This is when Megan Gething jumped into action. She recalled a passage from a popular book-gone-movie series where a tourniquet was tied to save a character’s life.
Mackenzie George and Megan Gething from WBZ-TV
“I knew how to do it from a book called ‘The Hunger Games,’” Megan said.
That’s right! The scene with Katniss and Peeta after an attack in the arena. Peeta is injured with a life threatening leg wound, much like Kenzie’s. The passage reads:
“A bandage will not be enough. I’ve seen my mother tie a tourniquet a handful of times and try to replicate it. I cut free a sleeve from my shirt, wrap it twice around his leg just under his knee, and tie a half knot.” – The Hunger Games
Megan used a pair of denim shorts to tie around Mackenzie’s calf. Her wound ended up requiring 48 stitches.
“To see that level of response and heroism in a 12-year-old girl is just unheard of we’re very proud of her,” Mackenzie’s father Gregory George said.
Paramedics agree that Megan did exactly the right thing, and her friend is expected to make a full recovery because of it, according to the staff at Children’s Hospital.
Megan’s sage advice after this experience? “Don’t swim in a marsh.”
