warning Hi, we've moved to USCANNENBERGMEDIA.COM. Visit us there!

Neon Tommy - Annenberg digital news

Pasadena Boy Calls 911, Saves Sister From Choking To Death

Melissah Yang |
February 13, 2014 | 6:20 p.m. PST

Senior News Editor

Jaequon Santos, 9, receives a toy police car from South Pasadena Police Chief Art Miller. Jaequon was honored Thursday for calling 911 and saving his younger sister from choking to death. (Melissah Yang/Neon Tommy)
Jaequon Santos, 9, receives a toy police car from South Pasadena Police Chief Art Miller. Jaequon was honored Thursday for calling 911 and saving his younger sister from choking to death. (Melissah Yang/Neon Tommy)
Nine-year-old Jaequon Santos and his 3-year-old sister, Yelaena, were snacking on grapes after school when she wildly began to jump up and down.

She was choking. 

Their mother, Jennifer Santos, knew right away her daughter couldn't breathe so she yelled at her son to call 911.

"I was thinking, 'Call 911, give them the address, give them what's going on and everything will be okay,'" the boy said, his hands tucked in his pockets. "I just knew that I had to do what I had to do."

Jaequon was honored Thursday morning at South Pasadena City Hall for his efforts last month that saved his younger sister's life. The South Pasadena Police Department hoped the Santos family's story would teach others the importance of knowing how to report emergencies and how to perform basic first aid.

"It's good news when the system works," Mayor Marina Khubesrian said in an interview afterward. "Everybody can come together, and we can celebrate a good outcome."

Approximately one child dies every five days from choking on food in the United States, according to the National Safety Council. And more than 10,000 children are taken to the emergency room for food-choking injuries each year.

But Jaequon's quick actions and the help of a good Samaritan kept his sister from becoming another statistic. 

Max Storer, a Starbucks barista, was on his way to work when he heard chilling screams.

"I thought it was children at first just messing around in the street, and then it sounded way more frantic and scary," Storer said. "I just knew something wasn't right."

He saw Jennifer rush out of her apartment complex, her daughter gray and limp in her arms. By then, her son was on a cell phone, telling dispatchers the address of their home. Storer knew CPR from scuba diving lessons he took as a child so he wasted no time to stop and help. 

Storer received a certificate from the police department while a dozen emergency responders and medical staff were recognized for their roles in saving the girl's life.

It took less than a minute for responders to arrive at the scene, according to Police Chief Art Miller. Firefighters were there in less than three. SPPD officers stopped traffic along the three-mile route to Huntington Memorial Hospital where emergency staff cleared the grape from Yelaena's throat.

"Every second counted," Miller said. "This could have turned completely in the other direction." But it didn’t, he said, because of Jaequon’s ability to tell dispatchers where to go.

LISTEN: Jaequon Santos' 911 call saved his sister from choking to death.

With his sweater collar smartly popped and his mouth pressed, the boy quietly accepted the applause of police and fire officials. His father, Joe Santos, said Jaequon was a smart boy who always was looking to help others. 

"Normally the kids will play, but when Jaequon sees somebody fall down, he goes out of his way to help them," he said. "We're really proud of him."

During the news conference, Miller hinted at a possible police career for the safety-conscious boy.  

"I'm not trying to convince you to take this route," Miller joked, before handing Jaequon a shiny remote-controlled toy police car.

Yelaena Santos, 3, rests in her stroller. Yelaena survived last month from choking on a grape due to her brother's swift actions. (Melissah Yang/Neon Tommy)
Yelaena Santos, 3, rests in her stroller. Yelaena survived last month from choking on a grape due to her brother's swift actions. (Melissah Yang/Neon Tommy)
But before then, Jaequon's job is being big brother. 

"What's good is that my son Jaequon has been really patient with her now. He's six years older so he has a little less patience. But now, he takes his time," his mother said.

Yelaena, sleepy and shoeless, shied from questions, choosing to clutch her mother or rest in her stroller. But her brother beamed as he said he didn’t know what his sister would say years from now, when they both were all grown up.

“Maybe thank you,” he said. “And she’ll give me something.”

Reach Senior News Editor Melissah Yang here. Follow her on Twitter @MelissahYang.



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

Watch USC Annenberg Media's live State of the Union recap and analysis here.

 
ntrandomness