CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia police officer is being called a hero after resuscitating a 29-day-old infant this past Friday.
Dramatic body camera video shows Officer William Eng, 46, of the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department, racing up apartment stairs and immediately performing CPR on baby Bella Walker, who became unresponsive after apparently choking, according to her mother, Tina Adkins.
"I didn't know if it was a seizure, if she was throwing up or what was going on. I panicked," Adkins told ABC News Monday.
She said she had one of her sons run to get a neighbor, who began doing chest compressions, while her other son called 911.
Eng was the first to arrive on the scene. “[Adkins] handed me the newborn baby and kept saying, ‘Please help, please help.’ [Bella] was like a rag doll,” Eng told ABC News Monday.
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“I just took a deep breath and did what I was trained to do,” he added.
After about a minute of compressions, Bella opened her eyes and began breathing, Eng said. EMS arrived shortly after and took her to the hospital for treatment. According to a statement from SCMPD, she has been released from the hospital and is doing well. At this time, doctors do not believe there are any lingering effects.
“Officer Eng did not hesitate to jump into action. Because of his compassionate and quick response, he saved the life of this little girl,” said Sgt. Phillip Collard, Eng’s supervisor.
SCMPD Chief Joseph Lumpkin described Eng’s actions as an “exceedingly heartfelt, lifesaving performance.”
Eng has been a police officer at SCMPD for one year. Prior to that, he was a non-certified officer in South Florida.
According to Eng, he received CPR training through the police academy but had never resuscitated a real person until this past Friday.
“It feels great but it’s part of my job," Eng said of saving Bella. "It’s why I wanted to become a police officer in the first place -- to make a difference and save lives.”
"I am just so grateful," added Adkins. "I don't wish this on anybody. God put Officer eng in the right place at the right time."