Quick-Thinking Firefighters Save Girl, 11, Having A Seizure At Public Pool In Jersey City
JERSEY CITY (CBSNewYork) -- A fun day at a Jersey City pool took took a scary turn when a little girl required immediate medical attention. Luckily for her, a first responder was in the right place at the right time.
Tanya Vaszquez says the Lafayette Pool was packed when she brought her 11-year-old daughter, Tatiana, for a swim Sunday afternoon. It was all fun and games until she realized something was very wrong.
"She was swimming from side to side and looked kind of spaced out, so I knew something was wrong," she said.
She ran towards Tatiana and realized her daughter was having a seizure, a condition she's been taking medication for since last year. Thankfully Tanya was playing with her in the shallow end, keeping a close eye on her.
"I make sure I'm always around her because as a mom nobody knows your kid like you do," Tanya said.
She signaled lifeguards, but a group of firefighters happened to be in the area for a community outreach program when they heard the whistle for help. They raced in and helped pull Tatiana from the water.
"We put her on her side and she started to foam and vomit, and then we started to administer first aid to her," JCFD Captain Ken Simone said.
It was then that Tanya knew her daughter would be okay. Over the past three years, Jersey City fire academy graduates are required to fulfill EMT training. After being checked out at Jersey City Medical Center, Vaszquez says her daughter bravely said she'll go back in the water.
Lifeguards aren't allowed to touch someone experiencing a seizure, but firefighters are.
