'Heart-stopping' Video Shows Hero Deputy Save 6-Month-Old Baby Girl After Fatal Car Crash
A community is celebrating a Florida deputy for going above and beyond the call of duty in saving the life of an infant involved in a fatal car crash. Deputy Sgt. Dave Musgrove was driving on the evening of February 8 when he saw a motorcycle speed by him.
The motorcyclist was traveling more than 100 mph. Shortly after the bike passed Musgrove, it slammed into another vehicle carrying a mother and her toddler and infant.
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The motorcyclist did not survive.
The motorcyclist was found dead at the scene, according to NBC News. The driver's body was wedged into the rear window on the driver’s side of the other car involved in the wreck, according to a news release from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office.
When Musgrove approached the car, he heard crying. Then he heard the driver of the car, Kayleigh Foley, pleading with him to save her children. Musgrove moved to the rear of the car and opened the door. He found a small child, 3-year-old Ariel, and removed her from her booster seat.
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Foley told Musgrove there was another child in the car.
Musgrove returned to the car to save what he thought was just the mother. “I assured the mother that Ariel was fine. And she said, ‘No, my baby!’” Musgrove recounted during a press conference.
At the time, he didn’t see a baby. But when he searched the car, he found 6-month-old Lola, who was stuck under the dead motorcyclist. Musgrove checked for a pulse. There wasn’t one.
In a video called "heartstopping" by Inside Edition's Deborah Norville, Foley can be heard screaming in the background, repeatedly asking Musgrove if her infant daughter is alive. Musgrove begins CPR on the baby, as the hysterically crying mother watches from the side.
Lola regained consciousness thanks to Musgrove performing CPR.
His efforts proved effective, and Lola regained consciousness. In addition to the trauma of this incident, Foley had already endured a tragedy. “I lost my fiancé six months ago, so what was running through my head was, ‘I can’t lose anybody else,’” she said, per NBC News.
Thankfully, she didn’t. Once emergency medical services arrived, they continued life-saving measures on Lola and confirmed that she did have a pulse.
Lola is still in the ICU healing.
Lola remains in the intensive care unit recovering from a brain injury, WBBH reported. In an interview from the hospital, Foley told the news outlet that Musgrove is a hero to her family. He’s called every day to check on Lola.
Lisa Foley, Lola’s grandmother, said, “The first thing he said to me, he said, 'I really hate all that recognition; I was doing my job.' I said, 'Too bad, buddy, you're getting it.' ... We will never repay him for what he did. What he did for us was life-changing."
'You can't teach that in the police academy,' Kayleigh said of Musgrove's actions.
Musgrove, who is also a parent, said he just wanted to do what he could to help.
"I'm caring. We're all cops. We care. She's innocent. She didn't deserve this," he said, per NBC News.
But Kayleigh believes it was more than a police thing. “He is such a genuine person and you can't teach that in the police academy."
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