Local Deputies Receive Lifesaving Awards Two-year-old girl and stranded male saved by SCV deputies

 On May 19, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) formally recognized 31 of their personnel for their heroic actions, including four Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies.  Each were presented with the Lifesaving Award, which is given to employees or reserve members of the department whose actions result in the saving or preservation of a human life that otherwise would have been lost without the employee’s direct involvement.
Meet Santa Clarita’s recipients.
Deputy Cesar Ochoa
Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station
On July 3, 2015, Deputy Ochoa, assigned to Santa Clarita Valley Station, responded to a service call.  The informant stated the victim fell, was unconscious and bleeding from the head.  Deputy Ochoa found the male lying on the ground and checked him but could not detect a pulse, and the male was not breathing.  Without hesitation, Deputy Ochoa began CPR and continued until Los Angeles County Fire arrived, and paramedics relieved him.
Upon arrival, it appeared the victim’s condition was grave, yet Deputy Ochoa’s instinctive reaction to provide lifesaving efforts ultimately saved his life.
Deputy Matthew L. Burnett
Deputy Christine M. Shaffer
Deputy Charles W. Weathers
Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station
On August 1, 2015, deputies from the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station responded to a call for a baby who wasn’t breathing, in a mobile home complex.  They responded within seconds of the broadcast and found a 2-year-old female child unconscious and very pale in color.  Deputies learned the child had been face down in the community pool for approximately 10 minutes.  Deputy Shaffer immediately began checking the child’s vital signs and airway.
Deputies Weathers and Burnett, assigned to the Parks Bureau, also arrived on scene.  Deputy Weathers applied a bag valve mask, which forced air into the child’s lungs.  As Deputy Weathers began administering rescue breaths into the child, Deputy Burnett connected oxygen to the bag valve mask.  The introduction of oxygen later proved to be the vital factor in saving the child’s life.  After approximately three minutes, Fire Department personnel arrived and encouraged Deputies Weathers and Burnett to continue their treatment.
Approximately two minutes later, the child began to cough and opened her eyes. Within seconds, the child began to breathe on her own and began to cry.  To keep the child from going into shock, Deputy Burnett wrapped a blanket around her body and continued to monitor her vital signs.  The child was airlifted and transported to a local hospital for treatment.
The family and bystanders cheered and cried as the child was revived.  The decisive actions by the deputies made the difference between the life and death of this child.