TAYLOR, Mich. – A Taylor police officer raced to the aid of a choking baby earlier this month and brought the infant back to life.
Liz Theil is the mother of six and a nurse, so when one of her twin sons, Landon, started choking last week, she didn't panic.
"I was doing what I'm supposed to do, you know?" Theil said. "I flipped him over and was doing the back slaps, you know? It just wasn't working. I guess more mother instinct than nursing kicked in because I panicked and called 911."
Taylor police Officer Marco Koki was at the home in two minutes.
"It initially came out, 'Baby not breathing,'" Koki said. "I parked, ran to the front door, saw the mom."
"I handed him to him," Theil said. "He flipped him over on his leg."
"My instincts took over," Koki said. "I started performing back compressions, or back slaps."
"He went hit, hit, and Landon started crying," Theil said.
"That's the only time I want to hear a baby crying, is when they're breathing," Koki said.
Landon's older sister, Bella, was the one who first noticed her brother was in trouble and told her mother.
"She's definitely my other set of eyes," Theil said.
"I don't like to consider myself a hero," Koki said. "Just a Joe Schmo coming into work and happy that a life was saved."
Koki said the rescue was just part of his job. After clearing the scene, he followed the family to the hospital to make sure Landon was OK.