Girls,12, awarded at ceremony for their bravery

Juliette and Lillia were recognised for their bravery at Guernsey Ambulance and Rescue awards ceremony

Two 12-year-old girls have been recognised for their bravery at the Guernsey Ambulance and Rescue end-of-year awards ceremony.

Juliette and Lillia helped rescue a woman who was drowning at Havelet Bay in the summer.

Juliette said they were not expecting to receive the awards and described it as "cool".

The awards also included special recognition for members of the public and a volunteer community first responder, and were presented by the Lieutenant-Governor, Lt Gen Richard Cripwell.

The woman the girls rescued, Sue Norrey, was unconscious and the pair dived in and kept her "above water" until others came to her aid.

Recalling the moment, Juliette said: "We just held her head up and her body up until other people would come in, but there were a lot of waves that were taking over her body.

"Two other women and a man were coming in the water to help bring her back to shore before the first aid response took over.

"It was a relief that she was OK and she was in a better position than before."

Asked how she felt to have received the award, she said: "It was definitely not what I was expecting, but it is really cool."

'Forever grateful'

Ms Norrey said she was "forever grateful" to the pair, as well as the other people who helped with the rescue.

She said she was put into an induced coma following the incident as her lungs were "pretty saturated with water".

Ms Norrey said she has since made a "full recovery" and was still in touch with the pair, who had "such institution, capability and gumption".

As well as Juliette and Lillia, volunteer for Community First Responders (CFR) Amie Perree also received an award for performing CPR on a tourist in Sark on 2 September.

Amie Perree said she accepted the award on behalf of the 10 CFR volunteers on Sark

Ms Perree said she was at home with her daughter when her husband ran in to alert her to a lady who had collapsed.

"I just newly-qualified as a CFR in Sark, so I went down to have a look. The lady's niece had just started CPR.

"I jumped in and did exactly what I had been trained to do a few months before.

"We performed CPR for 20 minutes until another colleague arrived with a defibrillator. She got shocked and started coming back round.

"I feel extremely lucky to have the people who were around. It is amazing to see she has made a full recovery."

Ms Perree said she was "extremely proud" to be recognised for the award and to have accepted it on behalf of the 10 CFR volunteers on Sark.

"We are all volunteers, and everyone works extremely hard to provide a service for the island," she said.