A 2-year-old girl who suffered a seizure and was not breathing Sunday was aided by Border Patrol agents before fire department paramedics arrived at the scene, authorities said.
The child's airway was cleared and she was given oxygen by Agent Michael Meshirer, a paramedic, after he heard a fellow agent radio for emergency medical services, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release Tuesday evening.
Agents who were leaving the Tucson Sector station at East Golf Links and South Swan roads encountered a woman with the child in medical distress near the intersection. The mother told agents that her daughter had suffered a seizure and was not breathing.
Meshirer found the unresponsive toddler in a car seat in the mother's vehicle and saw the child's chin pressed against her chest. Meshirer removed the girl from the car seat and positioned her face down, using gravity to clear her airway of mucus and saliva, authorities said. He then administered concentrated oxygen to help the girl breathe.
Border Patrol emergency medical technicians also arrived and monitored the girl's condition until Tucson Fire Department paramedics arrived and took over treatment. The mother chose to drive her daughter to a hospital for further evaluation, said authorities.
Fire Capt. Andy Skaggs said the immediate professional care by the agents before Tucson Fire Department paramedics arrived "is priceless for the patient" and increases the chances for a positive outcome.
The Tucson Sector has about 275 agents who are EMTs and more than 10 paramedics, authorities said. All agents are trained as first responders.Β Β Β Β
