FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A baby is expected to make a full recovery after being pulled from under a vehicle that had flipped during a crash, authorities said Friday after releasing dramatic video that showed the rescue effort along a busy highway.
Officers responded to the scene Thursday morning after getting reports that the child and mother had been ejected from the car.
Body camera footage shared Friday on social media by the Fort Worth Police Department shows an officer running toward the overturned car and beginning to search for the child as a distraught woman can be heard in the background yelling for her baby.
The officer rallied other motorists who had stopped at the scene to help him lift the car.
“Under here, we need to move the car,” the officer tells them, saying he thinks the child is pinned underneath.
“Keep moving, keep moving,” the officer urges them as the car is lifted just enough for him to grab the child's leg and pull it to safety.
The child was unresponsive, but one officer said he felt a pulse. They attempted to get the baby to take a breath, with one officer using his fingers to push on the child's chest. The baby eventually began to make noises and then started to cry.
Police said both the mother and child were expected to make a full recovery.
"Although this video may be extremely difficult to watch, it is an important example of the kinds of situations that our police officers may come across while performing their duties," the department said in its post.
Police Chief Eddie Garcia in a social media post referred to the child as a “little angel” and praised the officers for their heroism. The department also thanked the citizens who stopped to help with the rescue.