A 12-year-old Florida boy was captured on a surveillance video rescuing a man who suffered a medical emergency while in a swimming pool.
Seventh grader Austen MacMillan recently saved behavioral therapist Jason Piquette from drowning in a home pool, according to local outlet WSVN.
MacMillan pulled Piquette out of the water and onto the pool steps, leveraging the pool’s shallow area to keep Piquette’s head above water.
“I pulled him out of the water, and then I pulled him to that shore,” MacMillan told WSVN.
When he noticed that the therapist wasn’t breathing, the 12-year-old gave him CPR, a skill he picked up from watching television.
MacMillan administered chest compressions while simultaneously shouting for help.
His panic-stricken cries caught the attention of his father, Andrew MacMillan, who was unloading groceries at the time.
“I heard him yelling in a frantic way that I’ve never seen him [do] ever before,” Andrew recalled “So I immediately dropped all my groceries and ran through the gate.”
He called 911, but before help could arrive, the brave 12-year-old had revived Piquette, who was awake and gasping for air.
In the aftermath, Piquette expressed his gratitude towards MacMillan, acknowledging that the child’s actions saved his life.
“I wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for him. He is an absolute hero, and he always will be,” the drowning victim said.
In an effort to promote emergency preparedness within their community, the MacMillan family plans to organize a CPR class, aiming to equip others with the necessary skills to respond to similar situations.
