Deputy’s body camera captures his act of heroism saving a 12-day-old baby

A South Carolina deputy is being hailed a hero after saving the life of a 12-day-old infant.

Berkeley County Sheriff’s Deputy William Kimbro was on a routine patrol when a speeding car drove by him in the town of Summerville last month. He chased the vehicle, thinking that it was just another reckless driver behind the wheel.

The vehicle stopped and out came the driver. The woman told Kimbro that she had a baby in the car who stopped breathing after drinking from a milk bottle. The tiny child’s body was limp and turning bluish due to the lack of oxygen.

Kimbro immediately took action. He asked the mother, who was sitting in the passenger’s seat, for the baby’s name. Then, the deputy places the newborn on her lap, checks for a pulse, and starts massaging her heart, patting her chest gently with his fingers.

The dramatic episode was captured by the deputy’s body cam.

“Come on baby, cry for me, cry for me,” he said. “Open those eyes, sweetheart.”

The mother explained that she put Riley, her newborn child, in the baby bassinet for a nap. Then, she went to take a shower while her stepmother watched her daughter. One minute the baby was sleeping peacefully, the next she started choking and there was milk in her mouth.

“Please open those eyes, sweetheart,” Kimbro said as he tried to open the baby’s mouth with his fingers.

In a moment of relief, the baby starts crying and the deputy says, “As long as she’s crying like that she’s breathing. I want you to cry. Come on.”

He continued performing CPR because the baby’s breathing was going on and off. Finally, her chest starts moving, which meant that she was breathing again on her own. During this moment, the emergency medical team arrives and takes Riley.

The baby was brought to a local hospital for observation and was released, according to sheriff’s spokeswoman Carli R. Drayton.

“As far as we know, the baby has been doing well,” Drayton said.

Officer Kimbro recounted the harrowing situation in an interview with Inside Edition.

“The whole time I was thinking to myself, do not let this baby die in front of her mother and her grandmother. Just don’t,” he said. “I’m just glad little Riley is just flourishing.”

The sheriff’s department lauded the deputy for his quick-thinking and shared the body cam footage on their Facebook page.

“Because of deputy Kimbro’s steadfast, professional and heroic response, the 12-day-old baby was able to live,” the department wrote.

Watch the video below to witness how Officer Kimbro saved this infant’s life.

The officer was awarded a “Life-Saving Medal” for his heroic deed. A well-deserved recognition indeed!