CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A toddler is in stable condition after submerging near a waterfall at Tuxedo Park on Saturday, following resuscitation efforts by a bystander nurse and first responders.
Brooklyn Heights Fire Department and Brooklyn Heights Police Department responded to the park around 4:30 p.m. Seven Hills Fire Department and Parma Fire Department also responded as mutual aid.
Bystanders pulled child from water
Sarah Trowbridge had brought her four children and their friends to the park when the incident unfolded. She said the group had been playing near the creek when shouting and screaming broke out.
Trowbridge ran toward the commotion and found someone already holding the boy. She said she immediately began CPR.
“I just thought of air, so I started CPR,” Trowbridge said.
The toddler, who Trowbridge knew, had followed his older brother into the creek and went under.
“I couldn’t have done that alone. Somebody was holding him. His brother and my son had pulled him out of the water,” Trowbridge said.
Officer, off-duty firefighters assisted
A Brooklyn Heights Police officer arrived and provided first-responder care until fire and EMS crews took over. Two off-duty Brooklyn Heights firefighters with specialized water and dive rescue training were also recalled to assist.
The patient was located several hundred feet into the park. Crews continued medical care and transported him to an awaiting ambulance. He was taken to UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in stable condition.
‘So different, because I was panicking too’
Trowbridge, a nurse, said the situation felt unlike anything she had experienced on the job.
“It felt like something I had done before and yet so different, because I was panicking too,” she said.
Trowbridge said the weight of the moment was not lost on her during the rescue.
“I was really scared because I know this child, I care for this child,” she said. “I kept thinking about if he doesn’t come around, what am I going to tell his mother. What will I tell his mother as I’m giving him CPR.”
She said her son watched from nearby.
“Then my son was crying on the ridge watching this whole thing and he was praying,” Trowbridge said.
Brooklyn Heights Fire Chief Lasky recognized Trowbridge following the incident, saying her actions were key to the successful resuscitation.
‘Anyone can do it’
Trowbridge said she hopes the incident serves as a reminder about the importance of CPR training.
“I happen to have CPR training and I have practiced it. That’s all you need. Anyone can do it,” she said.
The Brooklyn Heights Fire Department said moving water and waterfalls can create dangerous conditions that may not be apparent from shore.
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