Off-duty Effingham firefighter saves 6-month-old baby

EFFINGHAM COUNTY, GA (WTOC) - An off-duty firefighter working for Effingham County Fire Rescue (ECFR) saved a choking infant on Monday, July 28, according to a social media post.

Days after the emergency, ECFR’s Tucker Woodcock was reunited with baby Willow.

He quickly responded to a call involving a 6-month-old baby who was choking. Arriving within minutes, he successfully used the Heimlich maneuver to dislodge the obstruction and assist the infant. Additional fire and EMS units soon arrived to help assess the baby, who thankfully made a full recovery.

Effingham County Fire Rescue

WTOC spoke with Willow’s mother to learn what happened and how she found the first responder who saved her daughter’s life.

“I got there. The baby was blue, not even crying, which is a tale tell sign that the baby’s not breathing,” said ECFR firefighter Tucker Woodcock.

A tragedy in Effingham was averted thanks to an off-duty firefighter.   

Lauren Rawson was at work Monday when she received a frantic call from her 10-year-old daughter.

Willow, her six-month-old sister, wasn’t breathing. Even her grandmother who was helping babysit didn’t know what to do. 

After telling them to call 911, Rawson left work fearing the worst. 

“I was worried that it was not going to be a good outcome, but I kept saying the devil wasn’t going to win today. Gods got this,” said Rawson.

Fresh off a shift, ECFR firefighter Tucker Woodcock heard the call. The address was mere minutes from his house, and he knew exactly what he needed to do.

“He could’ve been like ‘oh somebody else can handle it. I just got home.’ But he didn’t. He stopped what he was doing, loaded up his stuff and made it to her just in time,” said Rawson.

When Tucker arrived, he got to work and quickly discovered Willow was choking. He began the Himelick, eventually dislodging a small plastic bead.  

The sheriff’s office, EMS and fire rescue arrived shortly after, but by the time Rawson made it home, Tucker was gone. 

Wanting to say thank you, but only knowing his first name, Rawson turned to a Facebook community group to track Tucker down. 

“Everybody was just quick to respond, and their like ‘yeah, I think I know who he is,” said Rawson.

After reaching out, Rawson and Willow met Tucker at Station 12 on Wednesday, just days after the emergency. 

The firefighter says he doesn’t do the job for recognition or thanks; he just wants to keep people safe. 

“It’s not every day that you get to the patient after. It always brings a light to everybody’s eyes when you get to see them, especially a beautiful six-month-old baby laughing, smiling,” said Woodcock.