Michaela Meade
Two Craigieburn sisters have been named among 21 young Victorians as Junior Triple Zero Heroes by the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority (ESTA), for calling triple-0.
Nine-year-old Alia and six-year-old Aaya called for emergency services when their dad’s face was drooping and showing signs of a stroke.
The pair conducted a stroke test on their dad and followed instructions by the call-taker until an ambulance arrived.
Alia said it was sad to see her dad in pain, but that she knew what to do.
“At the same time I felt comfortable knowing that [triple-0] is only a phone call away,” Alia said.
“I was calm and explained what was happening to my dad to the operator.”
Aaya said she was scared but knew from school that the first thing to do was call triple-0.
“I was comfortable speaking to the operator with my sister and explaining what was happening with my dad,” Aaya said.
The girls said they “both feel excited that we will be named junior triple zero heroes”.
Their dad, Majed Toufaili said he was proud of his daughters’ achievement.
“The experience was scary at first but knowing that I always talk to my kids about what to do in an emergency gave me confidence that my girls would rise to the challenge and sure enough they did,” Mr Toufaili said.
“I couldn’t be prouder of my girls for what they did and how calm they were when they were speaking to the operator.”
