Deputy saves toddler who nearly drowned
By: An Oklahoma sheriff's deputy says he's glad he was in the right place at the right time when he got the call about a young child who had nearly drowned.
As soon as Deputy Michael King got out of his car on June 18, the first thing he heard was a family screaming.
"I could definitely tell they were in some sort of shock," he said.
A two-year-old girl, learning to swim for the first time, was unconscious after being pulled from the water.
"The first thing I did notice is that there was fluids in the mouth," Deputy King said. "So, that's why I rolled them to the side."
Deputy King immediately began performing life-saving measures.
"I think I was just at the right place at the right time, especially with how long she'd been unconscious," he said. "The time I got the call to the time I was on scene was just under two minutes. I started performing back pats, trying to alleviate any of the water or anything like that in her mouth, any obstructions."
After several minutes of CPR, the toddler began breathing again.
She was airlifted to the hospital in stable condition, all thanks to Deputy King's quick actions.
"So this was the first time I've ever had to do life-saving measures on a child," Deputy King said. 'I do have one child, one little boy. He's four years old. Then, getting this call to a drowning, it definitely was, like, it could've been anybody's kid, you know? Thinking that I was just in the pool with mine."
The little girl made a full recovery after spending four days in the hospital.
Deputy King wants people to know that young children should be wearing flotation devices anytime they are in or near water.