There are plans regarding a special tribute to honour hero Thames hero Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole.
Folajimi, who was known as Jimi, was on his way home from work at a central London restaurant when he entered the River Thames to try and save a woman, who fell from London Bridge after midnight on 24 April.
Another man jumped into the river with Jimi; he and the woman were rescued by emergency services – but Jimi’s body was not found until 6am.
The tragedy has led to calls for the Nigerian-born restaurant worker to be honoured for his selflessness and talks are under way for him to be recognised at Postman’s Park, reports The Evening Standard.
The garden, close to St Paul’s Cathedral, is home to plaques dedicated to ordinary people who have displayed acts of self-sacrifice.
Loss
His emotional parents described him as someone with “a good heart” as they spoke of their loss.
His friend, Bernard Kosia, who was with him on the night, described him as a “hero” for what he did.
'Jimi means a lot to everyone.'
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) April 27, 2021
Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole's best friend Bernard Kosia talks to @susannareid100 and @adilray about his best friend.
He pays tribute to the 'hero' who sadly lost his life saving a woman from the Thames.#JimiTheHero pic.twitter.com/Z63YoNRIca
Mr Olubunmi-Adewole’s father, Michael Adewola, and mother, Olasunkanmi Adewole, wept as they paid tribute to their son.
Mr Adewola said: “I want the Government to honour him.”
He added: “Jimi was a good soul to me.”
Describing him as “the breadwinner of the house”, he said he was “always taking care of me and my wife and his friends”.
He thanked all those who have supported a GoFundMe page set up to help the family.
Mrs Adewole said her son “had a good heart”.
The couple have previously been reported as saying they believe the length of the search for their son in the water was “not enough”, adding that they “want justice” for him.
Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole lost his life saving a woman from the Thames.
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) April 27, 2021
Folajimi's dad Michael is calling for the government to honour his son.
There is a campaign to get Jimi a posthumous George Cross. pic.twitter.com/1gFZTj0y0W
Related: Fundraiser for ‘Jimi The Hero’, who jumped into Thames to save woman, passes £25k
Since you are here
Since you are here, we wanted to ask for your help.
Journalism in Britain is under threat. The government is becoming increasingly authoritarian and our media is run by a handful of billionaires, most of whom reside overseas and all of them have strong political allegiances and financial motivations.
Our mission is to hold the powerful to account. It is vital that free media is allowed to exist to expose hypocrisy, corruption, wrongdoing and abuse of power. But we can't do it without you.
If you can afford to contribute a small donation to the site it will help us to continue our work in the best interests of the public. We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point.
To donate or subscribe to The London Economic, click here.
The TLE shop is also now open, with all profits going to supporting our work.
The shop can be found here.
You can also SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER .
