Retired nurse saves baby’s life on board a plane
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A retired nurse saved the life of an infant aboard a plane after the baby stopped breathing during a flight.
The incident occurred last Thursday about half an hour into a Spirit Airlines flight from Pittsburgh to Orlando.
Tamara Panzino told WESH she was reading and wearing earbuds when she noticed a flight attendant saying “we have an infant not breathing.” Someone then asked over the plane’s speaker system if there was a doctor on board.
Panzino rushed to the back of the plane and started asking questions. She learned the 3-month-old girl, Anjelé, was still when she stopped breathing and started turning blue.
“Gave daddy the baby. He held it while I did a sternal rub, kind of an aggressive shake of the chest. Get the baby to react by pinching it. Trying to make it cry or take a deep breath,” Panzino said.
After more vigorous massaging of the chest and legs, the baby started breathing again and Panzino heard a heartbeat.
“Oh, my gosh, total relief,” she said.
Orlando Fox affiliate meteorologist Ian Cassette was also aboard and took some video of the incident.
The child’s parents told Cassette they had never experienced anything like that before.
The plane landed safely in Orlando and Panzino told WESH she was going back into vacation mode and taking a cruise.
