Editor’s Note: As a special part of celebrating the Maimonides Society’s 30th anniversary, the society chose to fund an ambucycle (ambucycle #709) as part of their campaign. Ambucycles are used extensively in Israel with its narrow roads and high traffic congestion and dramatically reduce the arrival time for medical first responders. Below is a special story from United Hatzalah, who the Lehigh Valley partnered with in this incredible opportunity.

It was nearly 3 a.m. when Daniel, a resident of Ma’alot who drives ambucycle #709, awoke to the sound of his United Hatzalah radio crackling “infant choking.” Realizing that this was a life-threatening situation, Daniel jumped out of bed, threw on his clothes and raced outside to the ambucycle. He flipped on his lights and sped to the scene, making it in just two minutes!

The little boy’s mother was sobbing and frantic with worry. The 6-month-old boy was turning blue. He was short of breath, slipping in and out of consciousness. When his mom saw the ambucyle on the horizon, she ran outside, clutching her little one in her arms. She leapt toward Daniel, crying for help as she literally thrust the baby boy toward him.

The experienced medic quickly took the 6-month-old, turned his face down, and administered measured back blows. He repeated the procedure seven times until the child finally discharged the small piece of LEGO he had swallowed! With the airway now cleared, Daniel immediately administered oxygen as he took the baby’s vital signs. He watched as the infant returned to full consciousness. The little boy relaxed and his complexion slowly returned to normal as the vital oxygen circulated around his tiny body.

The experience of saving this young boy’s life was very moving for Daniel, who now found himself sharing tears in the middle of the night with the baby’s mother. He helped assuage her fears, reassuring her that the primary danger had passed. The intensive care ambulance arrived nearly 15 minutes later and took mother and baby to the hospital for further observation.

Though Daniel’s sleep was certainly interrupted, he was gratified to know that he had made a positive difference. There is no doubt that this little boy would have died without receiving Daniel's prompt intervention. Thanks to his speedy ambucycle, Daniel was able to save this baby’s life.