LOS ANGELES — A 5-year-old boy was reunited Tuesday with the firefighters who saved his life.
KTLA reported that firefighters responded to a 911 call concerning Elijah Watkins on May 29, who was on a playground at his school when he went into cardiac arrest.
“They said that he had passed out,” Elijah’s mother, Lottie, said Tuesday at LAFD headquarters, where her family joined the five firefighters and the 911 caller. “I wasn’t aware that not only did he pass out, but he stopped breathing.”
The firefighters performed CPR and rushed him to a hospital, where he remained for several weeks in recovery, according to the report.
“I would just like to say thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, our family thanks you very much,” Lottie Watkins told the first responders at the news conference.
Elijah said he would like to be a firefighter himself someday, according to the report.
“That was a highlight of my career experience. That was something special,” one of the firefighters said of the rescue. “I was calling family around the states, just to share that moment. That was an awesome experience.”