Ralph Mondesir, a Gwinnett County Police officer, and an off-duty nurse are being praised as heroes after body camera footage showing them doing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a child who had stopped breathing and saving the child’s life surfaced.
While parked and working on a report from a previous call on August 17, Mondesir was informed that a toddler was not breathing.
The toddler was surrounded by bystanders, according to bodycam footage, when Mondesir took the 18-month-old into his arms and started CPR for seven minutes. A woman is overheard saying, “His pulse is getting stronger,” before the baby resumes breathing. Paramedics transported the toddler to the hospital for additional treatment.
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According to the police, the officer hurried to assist without hesitation.
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In addition, an unnamed off-duty nurse intervened “quickly and bravely,” saving the infant when necessary.
The child survived after being taken to the hospital. The toddler may have been suffering from an allergic reaction.
“The first and foremost [thought] was just make sure that little one was able to make it,” Mondesir told Fox 5 Atlanta. “I was nervous, at first, he wouldn’t have made it.”
Mondesir looked shaken in the body cam footage after saving the child’s life.
“I didn’t expect that… I didn’t expect that to take a toll like that,” the officer told 11 Alive.
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The emotional toll of the rescue, according to Mondesir, overwhelmed him later.
“I got a little bit choked up towards the end there,” he said. “I basically did what I was hired to do and it’s one of those things where I’m going to continue doing it no matter what.”
The doctor who treated the toddler hailed the police and nurse’s fast responses for saving the child.
However, according to 11 Alive, this is not the first time Mondesir has stepped in to assist someone.
In 2022, Mondesir got the Lifesaving Award for saving a woman’s life and her leg after she was struck by a car by fitting a tourniquet.
A social media statement from the Gwinnett County Police Department stated that “their actions exemplify the essence of being a first responder.”
