Boys Hailed Heroes After Saving ‘Scared’ and Injured Elderly Woman

Two 13-year-old boys in Iowa are being hailed as heroes after a simple bike ride turned into a life-saving rescue.

Gunner Skidmore and Kohen Chick were riding their bikes on June 9 in Fruitland, Iowa, when they spotted something strange near a home along a local trail.

At first, they were not sure what they were seeing.

Then they realized it was an elderly woman lying on the ground.

She had reportedly been stranded outside for more than 16 hours.

“I went to the trail and Kohen was like, ‘You see that lady back there?’” Gunner told KWQC. “Then, we went back and looked, and it took a little while to find her.”

When the boys finally reached the woman, they knew something was seriously wrong.

“I said, ‘Hey ma’am, are you okay?’” Gunner recalled. “She was like, ‘Yeah, I need help. Call 911.’”

The woman did not have a phone. She did not have water. She had been exposed to the elements all night.

Gunner said he quickly called his mother, who rushed to the scene and contacted emergency crews.

“She showed up pretty fast and then my mom called 911,” he said. “[The elderly woman] didn’t have her phone or water or anything. She was there for like 16-plus hours.”

According to the boys, the woman told them she had been outside since around 5 p.m. the day before.

Kohen said it was clear she had been terrified.

“She was scared,” he told the outlet. “You could just tell because like her face, she was covered in all these bugs and stuff.”

The teens believe the woman may have fallen while feeding her horse. They said she told them she had rolled from her backyard to her front yard while desperately trying to get help.

The boys believe their timing may have saved her life.

“A few more hours and she definitely like wouldn’t have made it,” Gunner said.

The woman was taken by ambulance to a hospital in nearby Muscatine for treatment.

Gunner’s mother later told KWQC that she has stayed in touch with the woman’s family and even helped take care of the woman’s horse while she recovers. She also plans to make the woman a lasagna when she comes home.

The boys’ quick thinking did not go unnoticed.

On June 15, Gunner and Kohen were honored with a special award from Muscatine County emergency officials.

Christopher Jasper, the county’s emergency management director, praised the teens for their compassion and courage.

“Today, I would like to recognize the extraordinary actions of two young men whose quick thinking and compassion helped save a life in Muscatine County,” Jasper said during the ceremony, according to an excerpt obtained by PEOPLE.

“Without the prompt actions of Gunner and Kohen, the outcome could have been tragic,” he added. “Their awareness, compassion, and willingness to help a person in need undoubtedly made a difference and may very well have saved her life.”

What started as an ordinary summer bike ride ended with two teenagers being credited for helping save a woman who had been alone, injured and scared for an entire night.