CALDWELL, Idaho — A trainee deputy is being credited with helping save a teenage boy who collapsed after taking drugs Tuesday night.
According to the sheriff's office, the incident happened at a home on Towns Circle in Caldwell. A 911 caller told dispatchers that the 16-year-old boy had used marijuana and an unknown substance, then began gasping and having a seizure.
Deputies arrived at the home to find the boy convulsing on the floor. He was still breathing, but became unresponsive a short time later, officials say.
At that point, a deputy administered the opioid reversal drug Narcan to the teenager. According to the sheriff's office, the teen gasped once, then lapsed back into unconsciousness. The deputy gave him a second dose, bringing the boy back to consciousness.
Paramedics arrived a short time later and took the teen to a local hospital.
“I want to commend my deputies for their quick-thinking last night that likely saved this young man’s life,” Sheriff Kieran Donahue said in a statement. “It’s a testament to the training our deputies go through to handle these types of situations, particularly when you consider that the deputy who administered the Narcan was a trainee working patrol duty alongside a senior officer.”
The sheriff's office said the incident should serve as a reminder of the dangers of illegal drug use, pointing to the potency of some of the drugs currently on the streets as well as high overdose rates nationwide.
