Lakeville Woman Saves Drowning 4-Year-Old With CPR

Being in the right place at the right time is often thought to be a critical element of success. That saying was never truer than when Leah Mae Mickschl, who is a nurse at Children’s Hospital, was at her neighborhood pool on June 19th and provided lifesaving CPR and rescue breathing to four-year-old Cooper Whitfield in a near drowning incident. Cooper was transported to Children’s Hospital by Allina Paramedics after the incident and has since made a full recovery. 

June 19th was a hot day and the Greenway neighborhood pool was full of kids when Cooper was pulled from the pool by his mother Christina, lifeless and not breathing. Leah was nearby and immediately sprang into action by performing CPR and rescue breathing on Cooper, until he started breathing on his own. By the time the first officer, Troy Hokanson, arrived on the scene, Cooper was conscious and breathing on his own. 

Officer Hokanson nominated Leah Mickschl for the Chief’s Award of Merit for her calm response under extreme stress in providing lifesaving CPR and rescue breathing to Cooper in the critical seconds after he was pulled from the water. 

At the Lakeville City Council meeting this past Monday night, it was my honor to present Leah Mickschl with the LPD Chief’s Award of Merit and a Lakeville Heart Restart shirt, in recognition of her extraordinary and lifesaving actions on June 19th. Cooper’s mother, Christina, also had an opportunity to thank Leah for her lifesaving actions during the presentation. Leah’s quick actions in the seconds after Cooper was pulled from the water demonstrated how important it is for everyone to be trained in CPR and to know what to do in a medical emergency. 

Leah’s lifesaving actions also have impacted the entire Greenway neighborhood, as they have dramatically realized the lifesaving value of CPR and have organized CPR trainings that have already trained 29 residents. 

WEEKLY  SNAPSHOT

Sampling of LPD activity for the week of July 12 to July 19, 2012 

Traffic crashes: 11 Alarms: 27 Animal Calls: 49 Medical Emergency Calls: 27 Thefts: 22 Traffic Stops: 285 

COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SAFETY CHECK 

Traffic Officer Nic Stevens has organized two commercial vehicle safety enforcement details in the past two weeks, concentrating on roadways and streets that large commercial vehicles frequent. One detail focused on County Road 46 between I-35 and Pilot Knob Road and involved officers from Apple Valley Police Department, Farmington Police Department and Commercial Vehicle Inspectors from the Minnesota State Patrol.

During the safety enforcement detail five commercial vehicles were taken out of service until safety violations could be corrected. These violations included underinflated tires, unsecured loads and brake lines with leaks in them. All of the vehicles were repaired and on the road within a few hours. Due to the size and weight of large vehicles, these safety violations are even more critical to the safe operation of these trucks.