By Tenisha Waldo
The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
Copyright 2006 The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
All Rights Reserved
They make miracles happen every day, but seldom do Charleston County EMS dispatchers meet the people they help rescue.
On Tuesday, teary-eyed members of the Forster family embraced EMS dispatcher Jennifer Thomas for helping to revive 2-year-old Earle Forster, who had slipped and nearly drowned in his grandparent’s hot tub last week.
Looking back on the incident, Thomas, who was also welling up, said, “I was praying the whole time, even on the phone.”
Stay with me now
The emergency call came in at 1:34 p.m. the day after Thanksgiving.
Thomas struggled to understand the muffled voice on the other end, until, “Hurry up! I have an emergency,” blared through the receiver.
Remaining calm, Thomas asked, “Sir, this is EMS. What’s the address of the emergency?”
A panic-stricken Daniel Forster of Baltimore repeated his parent’s Mount Pleasant address, this time articulating and speaking much slower. His toddler lay unconscious at his feet. Just moments before, Earle’s grandfather, Ken Forster, had found the little boy floating face-down in the hot tub.
“What’s the problem, exactly what’s happened?”
“My 2-year-old son fell in the pool, and he’s drowned, I think.”
“Is he breathing at all, sir?” Thomas asked.
“No, he’s not,” Daniel replied, his voice jittery.
“Take your time. Stay with me now, OK.”
A team of EMS dispatchers working with Thomas contacted the local fire department and sent an ambulance to the house. In the meantime, Thomas gave Daniel and Ken step-by-step instructions on administering CPR to the still child.
Neither had performed the life-saving technique before.
But it worked.
Earle began spitting up water, his lungs filled with air and his skin color gradually returned to normal. Firefighters from the Mount Pleasant Fire Department arrived, and then paramedics arrived shortly afterward to take Earle to the hospital. When he was stable, Earle was transported to MUSC’s Children’s Hospital where he remained in intensive care for several hours.
Closure
Tuesday morning, Thomas called the Forsters to check on a fully-recovered Earle and the rest of the family. They made arrangements to meet, for the first time in person, later that afternoon.
“I wanted to meet her ... for closure; just to put a face to the person,” Daniel said. “She’s a real person with an 18-month-old child.”
The union was an emotional exchange of joy and gratitude.
“Thank you so much,” Earle’s mom Sara said as tears rolled down her cheeks. “You did a wonderful job. Thank God for people like you.”
Hugging Thomas, Ken said, “Thank you, doll. You saved my grandson. We couldn’t have done it without you.”
“I was so panicked,” Daniel told her. “You calmed me down.”
Thomas introduced the family to the other EMS dispatchers — Chimere Myers, Jennifer Graham and Wendy Weber — who worked together to save little Earle.
“When we heard crying in the background (while Earle was in the ambulance,) I just lifted my head and said, ‘Thank you God,’” Thomas recalled.
Baby boy
Daniel and Ken had gone to lay down Earle’s younger brother, 4-month-old Sean, when the accident happened. Daniel said it made him realize just how fragile life can be. Thomas’ directions saved his son’s life, he said.
On Tuesday, Earle sat in Thomas’ lap and fiddled with her computer keyboard. She has been an EMS dispatcher for almost 10 years, but this is the first time her quick thinking has saved someone’s life.
“I call him my baby boy,” she said. “It makes the job worth it.”
“Thank you,” Earle said toddling away.