A Milford cop is being credited with saving the life of a 14-month-old baby boy whose frantic mother called police when the child stopped breathing.
"I run into the house and a woman is holding a pretty big 14-month-old child, and the kid's ashen and blue and lifeless and not moving," said officer Robbie Tusino, 40, who responded to the Front Street home Thursday afternoon.
Tusino cleared the kitchen table, sending food and dishes flying, put the child facedown on the table and began the "boom, boom, boom, boom" of back blows to dislodge what was blocking the airway.
He rolled the baby over and saw what looked like a piece of apple or hot dog and swept it out of his mouth.
"There was a big gasp of air and he starts screaming and crying," Tusino said. "For once a screaming baby is a good thing."
Tusino, who responded to the 9/11 attacks in 2001 when he was a New York City police officer, is also a paramedic in Worcester. "I'm just happy it worked out so well and it was able to happen so fast," he said.
Police Chief Tom O'Loughlin credits Tusino with saving the lives of four other people, including a car accident victim and a teen who was having seizures, in his four years on the force. "He's remarkable," O'Loughlin said. "He makes miracles happen."
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
