A quick-thinking nurse averted a human tragedy on a Spirit Airlines flight last Thursday. When a baby on the flight stopped breathing, retired nurse Tamara Panzino immediately jumped in and managed to revive the infant.The Spirit Airlines flight, operated by an Airbus A320-200, registration N619NK, departed Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) at 17:10. It left fifteen minutes late but made up time and landed at Florida's Orlando International Airport (MCO) seven minutes early at 19:10.The three-month-old baby, named Anjele, was traveling with her parents on Spirit Airlines NK1691 from Pittsburgh to Orlando when the drama unfolded. Orlando TV station FOX 35 meteorologist Ian Cassette was onboard and said the family was seated three rows ahead.

Cassette said the parents of the three-year-old were terrified and told him they had never experienced anything like this before. He added, "They praised the positive energy of the plane and the heroic actions of Tamara for saving her." The weatherman also praised the Spirit cabin crew for their quick action.

Panzino, who was on vacation, told Orlando TV channel WESH 2 that she was reading a book with her earbuds in when she heard a flight attendant say, "we have an infant not breathing." She ran to the back of the plane where the baby was with her parents, and that's when her "years of experience kicked in." She said:

"I had no idea whether the baby was choking [or] if the airway was clear, and I did not know what I was dealing with. I saw an infant [with] the head back, blue lips and her skin turning blue, clearly in distress and not breathing. And my heart just dropped."

While the father held Anjele, Panzino started rubbing the infant's chest, in her words, doing a "kind of aggressive shake of the chest, trying to make it cry or take a deep breath. The baby's color started looking better [and] I was so glad." By then, they had moved to the front of the plane, and Panzino said:

As many people who do heroic things often say, Panzino pushed back when her actions were described as heroic. "It's not a hero thing, it's a community coming together and everyone volunteering to help with what their knowledge can do. I'm glad I was there." She was on the flight to go on a Caribbean cruise with her husband, departing from Cape Canaveral on the weekend.

Here's what the heroine has to say

On Thursday night a Spirit Airlines spokesperson said:

"We're currently gathering information to learn more. We thank our crew and guest for the quick response. Our flight attendants are trained to respond to medical emergencies onboard and utilize several resources, including communication with our designated on-call medical professionals on the ground, using onboard medical kits and receiving assistance from credentialed medical professionals traveling on the flight."

What a great result and fantastic job by Tamara Panzino and Spirit's cabin crew.

Source: WESH