Royd Kennedy

Standing on the deck of my mother's house in Manurewa seeing billowing smoke from close to Manukau City, I was unaware of the details of what was happening just a couple of kilometres away.

It transpired that a full petrol tanker travelling east up Wiri Station Road had crashed into a car, rolled and caught fire. A 12-year old girl had been somehow caught under the tanker, which was ablaze with a huge petrol fire, the explosive spirit blasting out of the side of the ruptured tanker. The only place you'd want to be is far, far away from it.

Knowing the girl was trapped there, Fireman Royd Kennedy crawled underneath the burning tanker and spent an astonishing sixty minutes under the tanker with, aware that an explosion could kill them any second as he used his body protection to protect the young girl from the intense heat while rescue was attempted.

Because he was an outspoken bloke, Royd ruffled one or two too many feathers and decided to move to Aussie. We standing here and not letting him be forgotten - ever.

In wartime, he would have been a certainty for Victoria Cross and legendary status as one of New Zealand's bravest sons.

Over 20 years later, the girl he saved has her own family who will no doubt grow up with the story of Royd Kennedy.

So should yours.

No greater sacrifice can be made than the laying down one's own life for another.

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