IREDELL COUNTY, N.C. — A 9-year old boy in Iredell County is being called a hero for his calm, quick thinking after finding his mother unconscious in their home north of Statesville.
A recording of his 911 call captured the boy’s actions.
“Is she breathing?” the dispatcher asks.
“I think,” he said.
“Can you see her chest rising up and down?” the dispatcher asks.
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”Let me go check,” he responded.
Channel 9′s Dave Faherty spoke with that family Wednesday as 9-year old Jameson Whitman was honored and met the dispatchers who helped.
Whitman arrived in a fire truck at the Public Safety Center in Statesville. It’s the same building he called to reach 911 dispatchers last week when he discovered his mother passed out and laying on the floor of their home. Minutes after that call, first responders arrived.
“They were here and they started helping,” he said.
Jameson and his younger brother, who was also at the home, both received a hero certificate Wednesday and met the dispatcher who took his call about his mother. Those telecommunicators said Jameson stayed calm during the call and was able to provide them the important information they needed to get help to his mother as quickly as possible.
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“He knew exactly -- when I asked about the address, he knew his address which is very important, especially with children that age,” Kristie Harbison said. “He knew his phone number just in case we got disconnected.”
Iredell County Public Safety has an outreach program where they go to schools and festivals to teach families what to do in an emergency when you call 911.
Dispatchers suggest teaching children their home address and phone number, even writing it down and keeping it on the refrigerator where they can see it if they forget.
Jameson’s mother is thankful for her two sons, saying they are her heroes.
“He is 9 and he does very well in multiple other things, but I was scared once I knew my kid was reaching out for me,” Casey Whitman said. “To hear literally that he did so good was really great.”
Dispatchers said a 5-minute conversation with your children could end up saving a life.
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