By Catie O’Toole
syracuse.com
Binghamton, N.Y. — Trooper David Draudt was working when he heard Broome County 911 dispatch a call for a 2-year-old choking and turning blue.
He rushed to the home just outside Binghamton when he heard the toddler was unresponsive and not breathing.
The boy’s grandma was at the door, waving him inside.
The boy’s mom was on the kitchen floor, holding her son trying to keep him upright. His body was limp.
The mother told Draudt her son had recently begun eating dry foods and had choked on a pancake.
“My first step was to try to clear the airway with my finger, but his jaw was locked closed,” Draudt said. “So then I began giving the back blows until I could hear him start to breathe again.”
About a minute later, the boy was breathing again.
The trooper put his gloved finger in the boy’s mouth to remove whatever was left of the pancake. Soon after, the toddler started looking around the room.
“I was happy I was in the right place at the right time and I was able to go in there and make it happen,” Draudt said.
Union Volunteer Emergency Squad (UVES) took the boy to UHS Wilson Medical Center in Johnson City for evaluation.
On Monday, state police shared the bodycam footage of the call from the morning of Nov. 29 in the town of Union. State police warned the video can be graphic for some.
The toddler’s family asked to remain private, but they want to give credit to the trooper.
The boy’s mom said she does not want to relive what happened and asked to remain anonymous, but said her family is grateful. After all, she said, they are able to be with her son today because of Trooper Draudt’s actions.
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