DAVENPORT — A Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputy is being credited with saving the life of a choking infant Tuesday after performing lifesaving measures.
According to Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Sgt. Brian Cleveland, Deputy Bob Gidding was responding to a complaint of illegal camping in the Davenport area when he learned that an infant was unconscious and not breathing just down the road.
Gidding
Gidding arrived less than a minute later and began a series of rescue back blows, a form of the Heimlich maneuver for infants, Cleveland said.
The baby remained unconscious and Gidding kept applying additional back blows until the baby finally coughed up milk, and opened her eyes.
She remained conscious and alert, breathing freely, and Gidding monitored her until medics arrived minutes later.
The baby was transported with her mother to the hospital for evaluation. Doctors expect her to recover fully, Cleveland said.
“We are extremely proud of Deputy Gidding’s actions, and feel very fortunate that he happened to be so close to this near tragedy,” he said.
Gidding is a 29-year veteran of the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office. He has been a member of the Corrections Bureau, Crime Scene Investigations, Search and Rescue, Field Training Program, Crisis Negotiation Team, and Cabrillo College Security.
