HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — A Florida Highway Patrol trooper’s quick thinking helped save an infant’s life Sunday evening, according to a release from authorities.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Trooper Billy Ortiz was pulling up to his home Sunday after finishing his shift when he was flagged down by a driver blowing the horn of a pickup truck.
The 25-year-old driver pulled over when he saw Ortiz and began yelling that an eight-month-old infant was choking.
FHP said Ortiz leaped into action attempting to clear an obstruction in the infant’s throat along with a passerby who identified herself as a retired nurse. However, their efforts were unsuccessful.
“Acting immediately,” FHP said the trooper and nurse rushed the infant to Oak Hill Regional Hospital where medical staff found a plastic wrapper in the infant’s throat.
“The Trooper’s rapid and decisive actions were credited with saving the infant’s life,” FHP said.