Firefighter saves infant from drowning
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Thanks to the quick thinking of Scott Campau, first counselor of the Spring Lake Ward bishopric in the Grand Rapids Michigan Stake, tragedy was recently averted on the shores of Muskegon Lake and a 1-year-old girl gets to keep growing up.
Brother Campau is a seven-year veteran of the Muskegon Fire Department. Around 8:10 p.m. on Sept. 3, a 911 call came in for a water rescue.
Because the dock is about a mile away and actually visible from the fire station, firefighters arrived on the scene only four minutes after the child and her stroller plunged into the dark, murky water.
"I remember thinking, 'I can't believe this is actually happening,' " Brother Campau said. "We train for rescues, and we train for stuff like this, but something like this you just can't believe is actually happening.
"I knew what I had to do. I knew that when I got over there, if the chief told me I could, I was going to jump in the water. I was pretty calm. I wasn't frantic. I couldn't wait to get there to get in the water."
While driving a rescue truck to the dock, Brother Campau loosened the laces on his boots and took his cell phone out of his pocket. As a result, he was prepared to immediately hit the water upon receiving the proverbial green light from his chief.
"I was given the OK to make one attempt while the others got their gear," Brother Campau said. "I jumped in and swam to the bottom, spotting her instantly. When I got to the bottom of the lake and saw the stroller, I remember thinking for a split second that that was the oddest thing I've ever seen because the stroller sat upright at the bottom of the lake on all four wheels with the little girl still in it, lifeless.
"I grabbed the stroller and swam to the surface, much to the surprise of the other firefighters who were just about ready to jump in."
Battalion chief Ken Chudy immediately began administering CPR on the child. Shortly thereafter she started crying; her screams were music to Brother Campau's ears.
"The last thing I heard as they shut the [ambulance] door was her screaming," Brother Campau said. "That's such a great sound when you hear [a baby] screaming because you know if they're well enough to do that, there's a good chance [they'll pull through]."
The girl received a clean bill of health and returned home following two days in the hospital. About a week after the incident, the girl's family came to the fire station to meet and thank Brother Campau.
"This was a very blessed experience for me," he said. "It was terrifically rewarding because we don't always have the chance to affect the outcome of another's life in this dramatic of a fashion."
