Less than a week into the new year Officer Gunnwelsh and Officer Musacchio responded to a suspected narcotics overdose within the confines of the 50 Precinct in the Bronx. When they arrived at the scene the officers observed a man passed out between his couch and the wall. The man was unconscious and completely blue from a lack of oxygen. The officers’ conversation with a witness in the apartment revealed that the man had taken an unknown substance in the form of a pill.
Recognizing that the man needed immediate medical attention, Officer Musacchio jumped into action and used her Department issued Nalaxone spray to revive him. The man began breathing, but remained unconscious. Officer Musacchio was preparing to administer the lifesaving antidote again when EMS arrived and gave the man more Nalaxone intravenously.
“You saved this man’s life. If you had arrived any later he would’ve been gone,” an EMT on sight confessed to Officer Gunnwelsh.
Thanks to the officers’ swift response and exceptional training, the man was taken to the hospital in stable condition.
