First responders honored after saving 2-year-old from drowning
By Marisela Burgos, Aaron Page
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WILTON MANORS, Florida (WSVN) — First responders were hailed as heroes after they pulled a young boy from a swimming pool in Wilton Manors.
Wilton Manors Police officers and Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue crews responded to the scene of a boy unresponsive at a home along the 1400 block of Northeast 23rd Street, just before 5 p.m. earlier this month.
“Please, I’m sorry, send someone, please!” said a frantic family member at the time.
One of the first people to arrive was Wilton Manors Police Officer Jonathan Elistin, who rushed to the back of the home to find the unresponsive two-year-old lying next to the pool.
“That’s when training kicks in and really just takes over,” said Elistin.
Without hesitation, he began to initiate CPR.
“I stayed with the child, with Fire Rescue,” said Wilton Manors Police Officer Charles Burgan. “Talking to him. It’s humbling life is fragile, and it’s a wonderful reminder in these occasions of why we do what we do.”
He then picked him up and ran to the front of the house where Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue was waiting to render aid.
“Come on, buddy,” said one officer who was on the scene. “There you go, come on, buddy, come on.”
“There you go, breathe for me, breathe for me,” said another officer.
Bodycam footage showcased the heroic moments when every department worked in unison to get the boy to the hospital.
“We’re just really proud of all the agencies,” said Wilton Manors Police Department Deputy Haley Plante. “That they worked so seamlessly together, blocking off roads, making sure he got there fast. And because of all of us, we managed to save his life.”
When crews rushed him to the hospital, the little boy was alert and sitting up.
“When I opened the door, I was like, ‘Thank you, God,’” said Leighton Green of Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue. “There are certain calls I’ll never forget. That’s one of them.”
The boy has since been reunited with his family. Two and a half weeks later, the Lifesaving Award was received by every person from every agency involved in the effort to save that little boy’s life.
While they may not consider themselves heroes, they are heroes to this family and to the community they serve.
“The minute we saw him breathing, that was something incredible to us,” said Carlos Coello of Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue. “This young man had an angel at every corner.”
A total of thirty awards were handed out on Tuesday, including to the Broward Sheriff’s Office dispatchers who got the first responders to the home.
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