One summer’s afternoon at Chrystalls Beach, South Otago, the sea whispered danger. Twelve-year-old Kithmi had been enjoying a gentle paddle, the water rippling around him as he tested his balance near the shore.
Then an imposing wave — nearly three metres high — broke, caught him off guard, and swept him off his feet. He tried to fight it, but the water tugged him further into the icy depths.
At about sixty metres out, he was treading water, fatigue setting in, adrenaline shaking him, and the shoreline a distant promise. It was then that his older brother, Kalya, age 14, turned to their mother and said with quiet resolve, “Okay Mum, I’m going out. I might not be back.”
That moment, frozen in fear and resolve, became the hinge between tragedy and triumph.
Stepping Off The Beach Into Danger
The family had recently traveled from Sri Lanka and were reconvening after years apart, thanks to Covid-era delays. They chose a secluded stretch of coastline for a restful outing. None anticipated the sudden power of the surf. When the waves began to swell, Kithmi was pulled under by the current, leaving his limbs fluttering in cold, merciless water.
Kalya, aware of the danger, first watched his brother struggle—hoping for a self-rescue. But when Kithmi didn’t return, he shed his jacket and shoes, plunged in, and swam toward him. He reached him with a calmness born of training and conviction.
In a practiced motion, he told Kithmi to grip his shoulders or shirt, and guided him back shoreward. Their limbs burning in the cold, the two brothers crept along the line between life and loss until they reached safety.
Though police, ambulance, and a regional rescue helicopter were summoned, by the time help arrived, Kalya and Kithmi were already on the sand—cold, shaken, but alive. The local dairy farmer and neighbors rushed to support, but the true rescue had been done.
The Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) later assessed that this stretch was notoriously dangerous — in the very waters where “no one survives” — making Kalya’s action all the more exceptional.
A Bravery Recognized Across The Commonwealth
For this act of courage, Kalya was awarded the 2022 Mountbatten Medal, making him the youngest ever recipient of the honour.
The medal celebrates the most gallant rescue or attempted rescue by a member of the Royal Life Saving Society in the Commonwealth. In a ceremonial assembly at his school, with RLSS representatives, emergency services, the mayor, and the Otago rescue helicopter on hand, Kalya’s classmates watched as he was unexpectedly lifted in recognition.
At the time of the rescue, Kalya had undergone lifesaving training in Sri Lanka. RLSS Commonwealth later confirmed that the rescue was carried out under freezing conditions—water around 10 °C, waves of ~3 m — and Kithmi was approximately 60 m offshore when Kalya intervened.
Kalya summed up his motivation simply: “I did it because if I did not, my brother … would have died.” He recalled feeling a mix of fear and determination. The school principal described him as modest and grounded—hero the tongue uses easily.
Four Vital Lessons From This Rescue
- Training And Preparedness Matter
- Without formal lifesaving skills, that plunge might have been fatal. Kalya’s training, instilled during his time in Sri Lanka, equipped him to act under pressure. RLSS themselves emphasize water safety and knowledge as essential.
- Courage Is A Quiet Choice
- Not the roar of heroics, but the whisper to go forward when every instinct says retreat. Kalya’s statement, “I might not be back”, wasn’t bravado — it was honest acceptance of risk.
- Sibling Bonds Often Drive Unexpected Sacrifice
- Love, responsibility, and urgency collide in situations like this. It is rarely about logic—often about heart.
- Recognition And Legacy Matter
- Awarding the Mountbatten Medal to someone as young as Kalya highlights how heroism knows no age. It sends a message: selflessness, bravery, and preparation deserve celebration—not just in firefighters or professionals, but in young citizens too. The recognition pushes a narrative forward: ordinary people in extraordinary moments can matter profoundly.
- Additionally, his story becomes a teaching tool in water safety, community awareness of coastline risks, and the importance of emergency readiness.
More Stories, Universal Echoes
Kalya’s story is one among many of youthful heroism across the globe, each reminding us that crises don’t choose age.
- In California, a 15-year-old boy drowned trying to save his younger brother in the Sacramento River. Though successful in reaching him, the powerful current swept him away. The family described him as a true hero, acting out of love and instinct.
- In Tennessee, a teen named AJ Cox rescued his brother after their car crashed into a pond while swerving to avoid a deer. He dove into frigid, unexpected waters and located his sibling under the surface. The act, both swift and calculated, echoed the raw urgency of sibling bond.
These stories converge around one timeless theme: when loved ones are in peril, ordinary people find extraordinary reserves of bravery.
Epilogue: What Stays When The Waves Recede
In the days and years that followed his rescue, Kalya returned to school, medal in hand, the weight of public attention balanced by his quiet, steady demeanour.
His goals remain grounded: he dreams of becoming an engineer or starting a business, and continues to refine his swimming skills.
His family, newly united after years apart, shares pride but also reverence for the narrow margin by which disaster was averted. The dairy farmer who employs the family recounted the ferocity of that day’s waves—vertical, powerful, relentless. He called their survival nothing short of a miracle.
More broadly, Kalya has become a living symbol: kindness in the face of chaos, calm amid fear, and the often-underappreciated force of youth. His story invites communities to reflect—on how we teach water safety, how we honour humility, how we gift our young people confidence as well as caution.
At Chrystalls Beach that day, a boy stepped off the sand into the cold horizon and back again, carrying not just his brother, but the promise that heroism lives in ordinary hearts.
