Brian Cappell, Southern California police officer, is receiving special honors after he saved the life of a 9-month-old baby who was choking.
The Culver City Police responded to a call of a baby choking nearby just last month.
Body camera footage that was recorded from officer Cappell reveals Janet Lockridge’s 10-year-old daughter, Auria, leading Cappell to her mother’s car where her smaller sister, Harleigh, was choking.
According to Lockridge, she was driving down the road when Harleigh started to choke on some food.
“She was struggling for air, she was struggling to breathe,” Lockridge shared with ABC News.
The clip reveals officer Cappell holding the 9-month-old, face-down, and slapping her repeatedly on the back in hopes of dislodging the food that was blocking her airway.
“I reverted back to my training. We’ve been trained here when a child of that age is choking, put the face down and do some hard slaps to the back, for lack of a better word,” Cappell said.
“I was afraid,” she said. “I didn’t know what the outcome was going to be, and I was just praying the whole entire time.”
After multiple, firm slaps to Harleigh’s back — she started to cry and everyone became relieved.
“Once I heard the baby crying, it was the best sound I ever heard in my life,” Cappell said.
Lockridge explained how she will be forever grateful towards to the officer, saying how she is “indebted to him forever.”
Cappell later posed with a photo along with Harleigh, who has since recovered.
The caption of the photo reads:
“Officer Cappell saved this little girl’s life yesterday. She had choked on something and was unconscious and not breathing. He did CPR and saved her life…”
Should you ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of providing first aid to a child under 1 years old, the publication Parenting shares a few tips on how to do so:
If you or a nearby choking baby is unconscious, first lay them on their back.
The publication then recommends you tilt their head back and lift their chin. If you are able to see the object, you can remove it.
Then seal your mouth over their nose and mouth — giving two slow breaths. While you do this — feel to determine if their chest rises and falls.
The next step is to reassess.
Be sure to put an ear to her mouth to listen for breathing and be sure to feel for chest movement. If there is on rising or falling, be sure to repeat the prior steps. If the baby breathes with your help – give one breath every three seconds until they breathe.
If they are still not normally breathing, begin chest compressions by first placing two fingers in the center of the breastbone.
Then deliver five compressions to one-half to one inch deep, following with one breath.
Do this until help arrives.
If your infant is choking but can cough, talk, cry or breathe — this means their airway is only partially blocked and trying to unblock it may make it worse.
Call 911 if the baby shoes any signs of blue lips, the inability to swallow, talk, cry or make noise.
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