PALM CITY, Fla. — First responders are calling a six-year-old Florida boy a hero after he dialed 911 when his grandfather became unresponsive.
WPTV reports that Zachary Ziegler-Kelley was spending time with his grandpa on Wednesday when he said his grandpa’s heart-monitoring machine started making a “weird” noise.
That’s when Zachary, who was the only one home with his grandfather, said his grandfather stopped talking and became unresponsive.
His grandmother happened to call to check-in moments later and instructed Zachary to call 911.
Zachary told dispatchers that his grandfather’s heart-monitoring machine was making noise and dispatchers were able to get the address by checking the landline phone number that the boy used to make the call.
“You’re doing great,” a dispatcher told Ziegler. “There’s a police officer outside your door and he’s going to check and see if your grandpa is OK.”
Zachary then let officers inside through the garage.
“Kids are a lot of the time easier to deal with than an adult because they’re not as aware of a situation as an adult… so their panic level is not as high,” dispatcher Brandi Baldesty said.
Baldesty, who did not take Zachary’s call, said the boy helped rescue crews get to his grandfather fast.
The boy’s mother, Sarah Ziegler, said she couldn’t be more proud of her son making the emergency call.
“If he didn’t, my dad would be here dead by himself if Zach was not here,” Sarah Ziegler said.
Fire rescue said it is an important reminder to teach kids how to make the emergency call, learn their address and know what kind of information to give a dispatcher.
“If there’s a fire, call 911. Somebody hurt, call 911. If something’s wrong with your friends, call 911,” Ziegler said.
