What started as a frantic 911 call in Bushwick ended in a scene straight out of a miracle. Members of FDNY Engine 277 rushed into a neighborhood apartment last Saturday and helped deliver a baby boy who arrived unresponsive. Firefighters and EMS crews immediately jumped into CPR and other lifesaving measures in the home and continued working on the infant in the ambulance. By the time he reached the hospital, staff say the child had regained color and a pulse, and the FDNY reports that both mother and baby are now healthy and grateful. Firefighters Jeffrey Jovin and Joseph Lopez were among the crew on the call.
Called to an imminent delivery
Engine 277 had been dispatched for an imminent birth and arrived to find the baby already being delivered, according to ABC7 New York. Firefighter Jeffrey Jovin, a former paramedic, told the station he "noticed that it was a stillborn" as the infant was blue and not breathing. Jovin and firefighter Joseph Lopez quickly took charge, assisting with ventilation, cutting the umbilical cord and stabilizing the newborn for the trip to the hospital.
CPR en route, 'pinked up' at the hospital
Jovin and a paramedic kept up CPR in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, and the baby eventually regained a pulse and "pinked up" after additional treatment, reports Patch. The outlet notes that the FDNY later highlighted the call on social media, praising the crew’s quick response and medical skills. The rapid turnaround from a still, blue infant to a stable newborn underscores how much the department leans on intensive CPR training and fast on-scene decision making.
Local station, lifesaving training
Engine 277 operates out of 582 Knickerbocker Avenue in Bushwick, according to Brooklyn Community Board 4. After the emergency home birth and hospital transfer, the FDNY told ABC7 New York that the mother and her baby boy are "healthy and grateful." The department’s annual Second Chance program showcases similar stories of cardiac arrest survivors reuniting with their rescuers, highlighting how training and quick action by firefighters, EMS crews and bystanders can turn what looks like tragedy into a second shot at life, according to the FDNY.
