ENGLEWOOD, Fla. — A Florida deputy is being credited for saving the life of a six-month-old after a deadly crash involving a motorcyclist earlier this month.
On Friday, the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office released details and dramatic body- and dash-camera footage from the Feb. 8 crash scene.
Shortly after 7:30 p.m., Sgt. Dave Musgrove of the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office saw a motorcyclist speed past him at an estimated 100+ mph in Englewood. Seconds later, the sheriff's office says the motorcycle collided with a car at the intersection of S. McCall Road and Regina Drive.
The motorcyclist had been thrown from his bike and was "wedged into the rear window on the driver's side of the vehicle." Inside the car was a mother and two children, including an infant. According to the sheriff's office, the motorcyclist's body had landed on top of the infant. In bodycam footage, you can hear the fear and desperation in the mother's voice as she begged for help.
"My baby! I need my baby!" the woman yelled during the chaos.
Sgt. Musgrove then got to work rescuing who he could.
He first removed a small child from her booster seat in the back seat. He flagged someone down for help so they could hold the child while he went to rescue the infant, the sheriff's office said.
He found the baby underneath the motorcyclist's body inside of a car seat, a press release explains. The infant appeared to be unconscious. Other bystanders at this point helped the deputy move the motorcyclist's lifeless body off the baby so he could get the child to safety. The baby had no pulse and was not breathing.
Sgt. Musgrove immediately started life-saving measures, including chest compressions. Ultimately, after "not observing any signs of life" the child "finally inhaled deeply."
The infant was then handed over to the care of EMS who had just arrived on scene and took over life-saving measures. Shortly thereafter, the baby regained a pulse.
“The actions of Sgt. Musgrove are to be commended," Sheriff Prummell said in a statement. "His poise and calm demeanor in a scene of chaos and tragedy ultimately saved the life of a beautiful child. I want to thank the bystanders who came to his aid as well, allowing him to focus on the immediate need of the baby. This was a senseless accident that resulted in a life lost, but it would have been two lives had Dave not been there. Still, I offer my thoughts and prayers to the friends and family of the motorcyclist and I ask that you keep this mother and her children in your prayers."
The infant's road to recovery is said to be a long one, but fortunately, they will survive. The other child and mother are also "doing well."
The sheriff's office did not release the identity of anyone involved in this crash.
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