“When we got there the mother was hysterical, and he was on the floor, basically dead,” said Police Officer Brian Eckenrode. “He had no heartbeat, no breath. We started giving him compression. We got a little heartbeat, then it left.”
Eckenrode and his partner Francesco Delucia had just started their shift on Jan. 6 when the 911 call came in about a possible overdose of a controlled dangerous substance on 69th St.
Entering the apartment the two officers found the 27-year-old resident, who lived there with his mother, in a lifeless state with altered skin tone. They immediately began working to revive him.
“We started chest compressions right away,” said Delucia. “Got some oxygen in him. Start switching back and forth. Go, go, go. It gets tiring. Especially when you have a vest on, you’ve got all your gear on, trying to do chest compressions. It drains you.”
“We kept taking turns back and forth,” continued Eckenrode. “We did over 1,000 compressions. We were there for a good 12 minutes just taking turns. I gave compressions, he gave air. We were sweating. We kept switching and we finally got a steady beat.”
Once paramedics arrived they took over treatment and the individual was revived by a shot of Narcan, a new substance used to counteract overdoses.
“When he woke up, they told him, ‘You were dead,’ ” said Eckenrode. “Heroin overdose.”
The individual has since recovered. Despite the alleged involvement of drugs he was not charged with anything. “They actually came out with a special directive from the state,” explained Lt. Charles Hughes. “Don’t victimize the victim. To get him help is more important than locking him up. That’s the most important thing.”
“When he woke up, they told him, ‘You were dead.’” Officer Brian Eckenrode
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‘There’s nothing like saving a child’s life’
At the same meeting, Special Police Officer Steven Pelaez received the award as Guttenberg Police Officer of the Month for December 2014.
Pelaez was dispatched to the 200 block of 68th St. on a report of a 2-year-old child who was choking on Nov. 16. Arriving on the scene he found the parents holding the child in the middle of the street.
“She wasn’t breathing at the time,” said Pelaez. “I took the child from the parents. I opened up the mouth and saw that she had something stuck. I was able to stick my finger in there and clear her airway. I was able to get her to breathe.”
With no ambulance in the vicinity, Palaez made a decision. “He placed the parents and child in the patrol vehicle and informed Guttenberg police headquarters that he was proceeding to Palisade Medical Center,” explained Caliguiro. “Other Guttenberg police units cleared the way to permit quick access to the hospital. It was only through his quick response and life-saving procedure that the child is alive and well. This is especially outstanding in that Special Police Officer Pelaez had only been an officer for four months at the time of the incident.”
As soon as his shift was over, Pelaez hurried back to the hospital to check on progress. There he was told by doctors that the child would recover thanks to his actions.
“It’s my single greatest accomplishment ever,” said Pelaez. “I don’t think there’s anything that will top that. No arrests, no drug seizure. There’s nothing like saving a child’s life.”
“The Officer of the Month is something that we had done fairly regularly in this town for many, many years,” said Mayor Gerald Drasheff, explaining that the program had lapsed for a while. “I think these two incidents are perfect incidents to bring this back. A lot of times our police have to respond to very negative calls. These two calls in effect saved lives. It’s a perfect example of what our police do on a daily basis.”
Art Schwartz may be reached at arts@hudsonreporter.com.