Va. girl, 9, saves 4-year-old from drowning

WASHINGTON – A 9-year-old girl is being recognized for saving a 4-year-old girl from drowning in Manassas last month.

Prince William County fire officials say they were called to a reported drowning at the Westgate Community Pool in Manassas June 26. They found two lifeguards attending to a 4-year-old girl who was crying.

The girl was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

While they were on the scene, officials learned it was a 9-year-old girl who had saved the child, after noticing the little girl was at the bottom of the pool.

The 9 year old pulled the girl from the bottom of the pool and over to the side, where she alerted lifeguards who performed CPR.

The Prince William County Department of Fire and Rescue is now recognizing the 9- year-old girl for her act of heroism

“If not for her swift action, this turn of events could have been tragic due to the loss of life,” fire officials say in news release.

The mother of the 4-year-old girl, a Manassas woman, was charged with felony child neglect after police say she left her five young children unsupervised near a pool when the little girl nearly drowned.

Giovanna Narvaez, 23, left her children – ages 1 through 8 – to sign in a guest at the Westgate community pool on Tuesday.

Narvaez was charged for leaving the three youngest children.

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