Victoria, BC- Three officers who were in the right place at the right time saved a man’s life while he was choking and overdosing at the same time.
On August 21st, officers were in the 900-block of Craigflower Road dealing with an unrelated matter when officers were alerted by a mother that her son was overdosing and choking on a sandwich in a parking lot close by.
Officers quickly intervened and struggled to control the man so that they could offer lifesaving intervention. Two officers controlled the man while the third officer administered abdominal thrusts to dislodge the food. Another officer arrived on scene and was able to administer naloxone in order to reverse the effects of the overdose. One of the officers established an airway and began supplying rescue breaths with a bag valve mask. The man eventually regained consciousness, was treated by the B.C. Emergency Health Services then transported to hospital.
The man was released from hospital a short time later.
So far in 2018, VicPD officers have administered naloxone 11 times to people that were overdosing.
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