Lincoln, Neb. anchor Bill Schammert couldn’t hold back his tears in a personal report about how a 911 dispatcher helped save the life of his 13-day-old son.
The KOLN evening anchor, who posted a video of his report on Twitter, asked everyone to “please forgive the tears and watch” a segment, during which he recalled a terrifying ordeal where the newborn needed immediate CPR.
Schammert and his wife noticed their infant son seemed sick and thought he might have a sinus infection. As they were loading the baby into the car to take him to the doctor, they noticed the baby had turned purple and was gasping for air.
“We immediately called 911 and within seconds a hero, a dispatcher on the other end, was guiding us through CPR,” Schammert said. “First my wife, and then me, trying to bring our son back. Just before paramedics arrived, he started crying—and in that moment, it was a good thing.”
Their son was taken to a hospital in Omaha and is doing well.
Schammert shared his story with a warning to parents and caregivers to always stay vigilant with CPR training.
“I have one plea: please, parents, caregivers, please know the importance of CPR,” he said. “We learned it, but we forgot it. We didn’t think we’d ever have to use it.”
You can watch the segment below.
Please forgive the tears and watch 🙏
Last Tuesday, we were surrounded by heroes who helped save our son’s life. My goal now, is to make sure as many parents as possible know the importance of infant & child CPR. pic.twitter.com/EGNcTuGkz5
— Bill Schammert (@BillSchammert) January 12, 2021