Pregnant US mother saves three children from drowning

DeWitt lay on the pier and was able to pull the children out of the water.
DeWitt lay on the pier and was able to pull the children out of the water. Photo credit: Getty Images

A pregnant US woman has been praised by local police after pulling three drowning children from the water in Lake Michigan.

Mother-of-three Alyssa DeWitt, who is five months pregnant, took her children to First Street Beach in the city of Manistee on May 25, Fox 2 Detroit reported.

Sitting on the sand while her children played, she saw three girls drifting further out into the waves and then waving their arms for help. 

"God did his thing today, and he put me exactly where I needed to be," DeWitt wrote on Facebook.

"I noticed a pair of hands waving towards me from the water. I immediately got my kids out of the water and ran onto the pier.

"A group of kids were getting pulled out into the lake and slammed against the pier wall. They could barely keep their heads above water... I’m beyond thankful I was where I was and that those kids get to live another day."

Fox 2 Detroit reported DeWitt tried to call emergency services but the wind was too high for them to hear her, so she lay on her stomach and tried to pull the girls up to safety.

Amid the wind and waves, she was eventually able to get all three over the pier wall.

"By all accounts this person did not hesitate to put her safety aside and we are extremely thankful for that. She's a hero," Josh Glass, Manistee City Police Chief, told the Manistee News Advocate.

Fox 2 Detroit reported the children only suffered minor injuries. DeWitt and her unborn child were also examined and found to be fine.