A Charlotte County, Florida, sheriff’s deputy is being praised for pulling a baby from a wrecked vehicle and rendering lifesaving aid on the night of Feb. 8.
The incident began when Sgt. Dave Musgrove spotted a motorcycle running in excess of 100 mph on in Englewood.
Before Sgt. Musgrove could react, he saw a “cloud of dust and smoke ahead,” the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office says.
The motorcycle had run into an SUV at the next intersection, killing its operator.
“As Sgt. Musgrove rushed to check on the victims, he heard the driver yell to him, pleading to help her children,” the Charlotte County SO said in a statement.
Musgrove located a small child in the rear seat and got her out. Then the mother started yelling that her baby was also in the back seat.
The toddler Musgrove removed from the rear seat started running around in the road. And he had no back up at that point. He called out to a civilian and asked him to hold the toddler while he continued working in the car. The man did as he was asked.
Sgt. Musgrove went back to the SUV but did not see the baby. Then he realized the baby was under the body of the motorcyclist who had been thrown through the window and into the SUV on impact. The baby was hurt and trapped in the child seat by the man’s body.
“At this time, some bystanders approached and helped to move the motorcyclist off of the infant and cut the seat belt so that Sgt. Musgrove could remove the car seat and check on the baby. The infant had no pulse and was not breathing,” CCSO reports.
Musgrove rendered CPR on the baby and got the infant to inhale. When EMS arrived, they took over and soon told the sergeant that the baby had a pulse.
“Although the road to recovery will be long, the baby is alive and receiving treatment thanks to Sgt. Musgrove’s efforts prior to EMS arriving. Both the other child and the mother are doing well,” CCSO reports.
“The actions of Sgt. Musgrove are to be commended. His poise and calm demeanor in a scene of chaos and tragedy ultimately saved the life of a beautiful child,” Sheriff Bill Prummell said in a statement. “I want to thank the bystanders who came to his aid as well, allowing him to focus on the immediate need of the baby. This was a senseless accident that resulted in a life lost, but it would have been two lives had Dave not been there. Still, I offer my thoughts and prayers to the friends and family of the motorcyclist and I ask that you keep this mother and her children in your prayers.”
