Close Menu

    Life Saved Because of Free-Range Kids, Age 9 and 10!

    Hi Folks – A reader named Jaimie sent in this story, noting that “These kids wouldn’t have been able to help if they weren’t outside, or if they were afraid to talk to a woman they didn’t know!”

    What happened? An Atlanta-area mom named Susanna Rohm was in her living room when she noticed her baby wasn’t breathing. Out of her mind with terror, she started screaming for help! And then —

    “We were outside playing football and somebody yelled call 911,” said Rocky Hurt, 9 years old, and Ethan Wilson, 10 years old. They helped save the life of the infant.

    “I said even if it’s a burglar we still need to help because it’s the right thing to do,” Hurt said.

    “We found that the baby was not breathing.  She was splashing water on his face and Rocky and I thought she was doing CPR,” Wilson added.

    “I am just continuing to scream not knowing what to do and then Rocky runs in, whom I never met, and he is standing behind me,” Rohm said.

    “Use two fingers, push on the chest 5-10 times, tilt back the baby’s head, plug the nose, and breathe into the baby’s month,” the boys added.

    “He said it so confidently that I just listened to him right away,” Rohm said.

    Hurt and Wilson said they learned how to do CPR from posted signs at their school cafeteria, Sedalia Park Elementary.

    Let’s hear it for preparedness, bravery and kids outside!!! These are all things our society is conspiring against. Think of the busybodies who consider it “dangerous” for kids to be playing unsupervised, and even moreso for them to run inside someone’s house. What about stranger danger?  Use this story as another argument for populating the streets with first resopnders — confident kids! Fight to keep kids outside a normal part of childhood! The life you save could be…your neighbor’s baby’s.  – L

    Our heroes!

    Share.

    Related Posts

    36 Comments

    4. CJW on

      What if it had been a trap? Those two boys could have been KILLED! Didn’t their parents ever teach them not to go with strangers? Quick! Somebody call CPS! Haven’t they heard of all those predators hiding around every corner, feigning calls for help just to lure innocent helpless children?

    5. april on

      I saw this story on the news the other day and was in awe. What amazing young men, their parents must be so proud.

    6. Kate Porokh on

      Great story, smart kids. My only negative thought – depending on the baby’s age – she wasn’t prepared not to blow to hard.

    7. Papilio on

      So the baby did actually survive? It could also have been the right thing to do, only too late…

    9. tired_triumph on

      Amazing kids! Bless them for not being afraid or figuring it was “not their place” to get involved. Their parents must be very proud of their quick thinking and knowledge.

    12. Lola on

      Now here’s another reason to shoo my kids outside: “Make yourselves useful! Go see if you can save someone’s life this afternoon…”
      (All they did yesterday was bury a dead robin they found on the lawn, but give them time…)

    16. millse on

      Love this! Kids are so much smarter than we give them credit for! I especially like that they knew what to do while the mother didn’t…just because it’s your baby doesn’t mean you know it all. This is something I’m constantly learning haha

    17. Warren on

      Amazing young men! And kudos for the mom for listening to them.

      The thing that stands out is they realized they could be possibly be putting themselves in danger, and yet still did “the right thing”. That is courage, that is morals and hopefully the future of things to come.

    20. Tsu Dho Nimh on

      That’s why ALL people should be required to learn the basics of first aid including CPR … when you know what to do, you are more likely to help appropriately, and the sooner you start help, the better things go.

      During my days as a ski patroller, I saw “kids” do some extremely practical things on the mountain, sometimes because of training or a TV show they had seen, sometimes just practical thinking, and in a couple of instances they saved lives.

      1 – A teenaged girl with a clearly busted wrist, the kind with a bend in it where is shouldn’t bend, arrived at the aid station with her wrist neatly immobilized and splinted on a dead branch with her scarf as the binder. Her younger brother (8-ish) did it, from what he had learned in Cub Scouts. It was very well-done, the girl was comfortable, so we left it intact, added ice and a sling and had her mom take her for treatment.

      2 – A patroller arrived at the scene of a “skier down, unknown cause” call and found a large man face down in the snow. A child who saw the fall knew that moving injured people was bad, so the child dug a hole under the man’s face to “find his nose so he could breathe”. (brilliant, and saved his life) The adult that made the call to ski patrol didn’t think to make sure of the breathing.

      3 – Several instances of bleeding snowboard slashes that were given prompt direct pressure followed by tight wrapping in various bits of gear to keep them from bleeding. The primo explanation – calmly given by a 7 year old – about his treatment of his younger cousin’s thigh wound was “He was leaking lots of blood so I put a patch on him and it quit”. He used their ski caps, a sweater, and a snowboard leash to improvise treatment for a fricking huge gash … probably saved his cousin’s life. The first trained responder peeked, shuddered and slapped more pressure bandages on over the first layers before we shipped the kid off to be stitched up.

      Yes, we thanked the kids, told them they did the right thing, told their parents what great kids they had, and reminded them that if they liked doing first aid they could be junior patrollers when they turned 16.

    21. catspaw73 on

      well done to those boys, and good on their parents for bringing up awesome free range kids.

      @Tsu Dho Nimh, it is amazing how resourceful and practical kids can be, especially if they are used to solving their own problems. Miss 12 is now sitting next to a special needs kid after her and her best friend noticed he was getting socially isolated, and went to the teacher with the problem and solution (Miss 12s idea), understand she is also helping him with his school work.

    22. Puzzled on

      Did any comments ask “where were their parents?” and bemoan the irresponsibility of letting kids run around?

    23. Taradlion on

      As a former life guard, then college campus EMT, then First Aid instructor, my kids (their friends and the kids I work with) have seen me stop to help or been called to help many times. I am the unofficial first aid person for the school’s family overnight. They (thankfully) have never seen me perform CPR. If appropriate, I have them help (handing over band aids or ice or or cleaning tweezers) and have talked to them about why they should learn first aid (take a course) when they are older. I am somewhat known as the “best splinter remover”.. . Only an issue when I have had (adult) neighbors and friends not remove splinters because they know I will be around later…I agree, all adults should idealy know CPR, but seriously, splinters , cuts, and bee stings should be a no brainier. Biggest issue is panic. Best thing for kids to see is someone remaining calm. Best way to stay calm is feel prepared.

    25. CrazyCatLady on

      How cool! And nice to know that kids actually pay attention to those posters that the schools pay for!

    27. mollie on

      Kids do the darndest things.

      In fact, I think they do way better things when they are encouraged to rise to many occasions in meaningful ways.

      Way to rise to the occasion, boys. May the adults who witness your deeds learn to view children as more than just small bags of helpless flesh…

    28. Donald on

      I love stories like this! it proves that children are people too. They aren’t frail mindless precious things that should be protected from experiencing life

    29. Andrew on

      Well done Rocky and Ethan. And to repeat what Tsu Dho Nimh said: “I saw “kids” do some extremely practical things on the mountain, sometimes because of … a TV show they had seen”

      The power of posted signs in the cafeteria and television programmes. Not exclusively, of course; but the whole of life is a learning experience.

    32. Library Diva on

      Great job boys!

      I firmly believe that everyone should learn CPR and basic first aid. I think this should be a mandated course in school, reinforced every few years. I signed up for it in college because I wanted to know what to do if I needed to do it. So far, I haven’t. But I feel better knowing that if I’m first on the scene of a terrible accident, or if the person at the table next to me at dinner tomorrow starts choking, I’ll be able to help.

    33. Ruth on

      I have seen this in YouTube a few days ago, and it never failed to impress me each time I hear or read this on the net. I also found a video about a toddler saving her mom when she collapsed in the kitchen by using her moms phone and calling her grandma to save the day. The doctors said that the mother was so lucky that if it had (the call) been made 10 minutes later the mum could have died on the spot. Maybe we can get used to seeing Kids Superheroes wearing tight spandex and earning big bucks in the silver screen. Blockbusters huh?