Every day, 911 dispatchers field urgent calls from life-or-death situations and help save lives. When this Marysville, California, dispatcher received a call from her own home, it was her son's life she helped save.
Back in May, Robert Kimball was moving furniture in his living room, while his 14-month-old son, Maverick, was playing in the bedroom. Kimball returned to the bedroom to find his son choking -- the boy's face already a shade of "pink-red," he told KCRA3. Maverick had swallowed a metal washer, and it was becoming progressively harder for the child to breathe.
After failing to dislodge the washer himself, Kimball called 911. Maverick's mom, Britney Melchor, was training a new dispatcher when the call came in from her home address, News10 ABC reported.
"It's the worst nightmare, it's the worst thing that any parent, let alone parent dispatcher ... could ever, ever go through," Melchor told the outlet.
When the trainee repeated the address to Melchor, she remained professional and called emergency crews, despite feeling helpless inside.
"Mommy mode kind of hit -- like that's my son. I panicked," she told KCRA. "But then I was like, 'You know what? I got to get him to the help he absolutely needs.'"
Emergency crews arrived right after Kimball, who has some experience in medical training, pushed the washer down Maverick's mouth, allowing the child to breathe again, according to CBS Sacramento
Maverick has recovered completely and is back to being that happy little tyke he always was. His mom told KCRA that even though the situation was horrifying, she's learned of the true value of her job.
"Being behind the console and in the room where you don't have interaction with anyone, you see firsthand now that you're someone's lifeline. You're their guardian angel in the few seconds that you're on the phone with them," she said of her high-pressure job.
Melchor's poise in that desperate time of need is certainly admirable. She was honored by the Marysville Police Department for her grace and accountability in such a tough situation, CBS Sacramento reported.
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