San Mateo police officers are credited for saving the life of a child who had stopped breathing while choking on a grape on Wednesday.
At about 2:25 p.m., police were called to the 500 block of E. Poplar Avenue after a mother witnessed her child stop breathing. The responding officers — Michael Nguyen, Camille Cosca and Stephen Bennett (pictured above from left to right) — were first on scene and performed life-saving measures including CPR before the arrival of paramedics. Along with helping to revive the child, the officers provided Spanish translation from the family to the paramedics, “helping direct the type of medical care needed,” according to the San Mateo Police Department.
“The child is currently in critical, but stable condition,” police said.
Grapes are among the foods considered to be potential choking hazards by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC. In fact, “grapes are the third most common cause of food related choking after hot dogs and sweets,” according to a case report published in the BMJ Journal Archive of Disease in Childhood.
You don’t have to be a cop to save a life. The American Red Cross is offering first aid and CPR training online. To learn more, visit here.
Photo credited to the San Mateo Police Department
