By Elise Solé and
Drew Weisholtz
-
NBC Today
10-year-old twins saved their father from drowning in the pool at their Alabama home thanks to a technique they copied from one of their favorite movies and the help of a neighbor's cardiologist.
"I thought, I've had a lot of times with him, happy times, sad times and some angry times, but I was like,
'I don't want this to be the last moment
,'" Bridon Hassig told NBC News' TODAY show with her father, Brad, and his brother Christian
Brad Hassig was in the pool at his home June 14 in Mountain Brook, Alabama, with his two children and their friend, 11-year-old Sam Ebert, when the mishap happened.
From left to right, Brad Hassig, Bridon, Christian and Sam Ebert, during their appearance on the TODAY.TODAY show
“It was a typical afternoon: We were listening to music and I was doing some breath-holding exercises underwater to relax,” said Hassig, a 46-year-old chiropractor, “I wasn't overexerting myself or trying to be a Navy Seal. ”.
But after diving to a depth of five feet, he passed out.
"I felt complete peace, I prayed the Lord's Prayer and then everything turned white," he said during the television program.
[The scare that the American swimmer suffered in Budapest can happen to anyone]
When they saw their father floating on his side, Bridon and his friend Sam jumped into the pool to rescue him, with the help of Christian.
"Christian said I was shaking and my head was turning blue," Hassig said, "he yelled at Bridon and Sam to jump and they each grabbed my shoulder and pulled me toward the stairs."
Bridon performed a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) technique on him, which he had seen in movies like
Our Gang
(
The Sandlot
),
but he had never trained before.
“I went from peace to being dragged out of the pool and then chaos, everyone everywhere,” the man said.
“They were the first responders.
I heard them say to me: 'Daddy, daddy.
Come back, daddy.
You have to be fine'.
He was very crazy, ”he assured.
The trainer who saved Anita Alvarez from drowning explains that it is normal for them to faint in the water
June 24, 202201:17
Hassig believes there was also divine intervention: “There's no way, physically, that they could get a 185-pound man out of the water like that and then know to do what they did, so perfectly fast.
They didn't take long to react, they ran so fast.
The hand of God was involved in all of that.”
Brad Hassig and his sons, Bridon and Christian. NBC 15
With his mother at work, Christian knocked on the neighbors door, but no one answered.
He then ran into the street and flagged down a car;
the driver stopped and asked her to call 911.
[In pictures: American swimmer passes out in the water and is saved by her coach. "Anita, breathe!"]
A neighbor who is a cardiologist heard police sirens in the neighborhood and ran to Hassig's backyard, where he helped the children remove his body from the pool steps.
When Hassig regained consciousness, he was coughing up blood, foam and water.
He said that Christian was next to him begging him: “Dad, come back.
You have to be fine".
"There were people everywhere," he said.
First responders rushed Hassig to the emergency room, and doctors admitted him to the cardiac intensive care unit.
After 24 hours, Hassig's vital signs stabilized and he was released from the hospital with a diagnosis of hypoxia (low oxygen to organs and tissues), pulmonary edema (caused by fluid buildup in the lungs), and difficulty breathing. breathe.
Hassig is still having trouble catching his breath and is fatigued, but he is recovering.
Lifeguard towers on Fort Lauderdale beaches will be decorated with marine themes
July 6, 202201:46
“I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and my EKG and blood pressure were normal.
I walked my dog for the first time this morning,” she said.
Hassig vowed never to do underwater breathing exercises or swim alone again.
“I am very proud of my boys.
I tell them, 'Remember that you are heroes' and I will be forever grateful.
And Sam is such a kind and gentle boy.
Now we have a bond,” he stated.
But the father now also struggles with guilt.
"My boys saved my life and it's hard because I put them in that situation," he said, "it's confirmation that God is always with you."
Hassig's children will now receive formal CPR training and he has also given them cell phones for future emergencies.
"It's a reward, but it's also for peace of mind," he said, "we need (more) water safety awareness."
