Sterling Heights police, fire save 7-year-old girl who went into cardiac arrest

The Sterling Heights Police and Fire departments saved the life of a 7-year-old girl who went into cardiac arrest during an apparent asthma attack and allergic reaction on Wednesday.

"It's a chaotic scene. You have a mom that is obviously, hysterical, right? She doesn't know what to do. She just needs help now," said Lt. Mario Bastianelli, Public Information Officer for Sterling Heights Police Department.

Sterling Heights police responded to a report of a girl not breathing in the 5600 block of Amberwood at about 4 p.m. Wednesday.

Bastianelli said it was an intense scene with high emotion.

When officers Colton Conley and Ryan Hartsmith arrived on the scene, a female bystander was performing CPR on the child, who did not have a pulse and was not breathing. Officers took over CPR and provided breaths until Sterling Heights Fire Department members arrived and took over care.

According to police, the child's mother told officers her daughter suffered an apparent asthma attack and went into cardiac arrest. They believe it stemmed from an allergic reaction to something.

At the scene, Battalion Fire Chief Jeff Duncan said that the girl was given a dose of medication designed to treat allergic reactions.

"Once those medications kicked in, the guys in the back of the ambulance, that's when the child woke up and started responding, and everyone kind of breathed a sigh of relief there. To see her eyes open and breathing off an oxygen mask, and she arrived to the hospital, that was pretty awesome," Duncan said.

The girl was transported to an area hospital where she is recovering.