Two Spotswood officers lauded for saving lives

Two Spotswood officers
lauded for saving lives
For policemen who were honored, actions were
all in a day’s work
BY VINCENT TODARO
Staff Writer

SPOTSWOOD — Saving lives is just part of the job for two police officers recently honored by the Borough Council for their actions.

Borough patrol officers Nicholas Mayo and John Pfeiffer knew better than to think they would never be called on to save a life. And when two such situations arose last May, each acted before they could even fully recognize what was happening.

"There’s nothing that makes you feel better than saving a life," said Mayor Barry Zagnit, who is a retired chief with the Spotswood Police Department. He and the Borough Council honored the two officers with exceptional service awards last week.

"That’s really what the officers are there for, to protect life and property, and to save people who are emotionally distraught and trying to hurt themselves," Zagnit said.

The officers teamed up to save one life in responding to a call about a despondent woman on May 11.

Mayo said police received a report that a woman had left her home while under heavy medication. The call came from her son, who wanted police to help find his mother.

Police searched near the home but could not find her.

They then approached the wooded area off Rieder Road and found the woman standing by the Manalapan Brook. She told them to stand back because she was going to jump in the water, Mayo said.

Then she did.

"We tried to take her out [of the water], and she tried to take us down with her and was being very combative," Mayo said. "She had some personal issues and just didn’t want to live anymore."

The woman, who police said was in her 40s, was eventually brought to shore by Mayo and Pfeiffer. Members of the first aid squad helped get her on a stretcher and took her to the hospital.

It was a memorable week for the two officers, as they had responded to a call six days earlier for a man who went into cardiac arrest.

The incident happened May 5 after a 911 call about a man who complained of shortness of breath and chest pain. The man, in his late 40s, was administered oxygen but went into cardiac arrest as he was being carried down the stairs on a stretcher, Pfeiffer said.

"The individual went into cardiac arrest, and we brought him back into the room," Pfeiffer said. "We checked his vitals and he was confirmed to be in cardiac arrest."

Pfeiffer then administered CPR and soon after, paramedics arrived. Pfeiffer was told to continue with the CPR, and after being unconscious for about 30 minutes, the man came to.

"He was taken to the hospital, and he’s fine now," Pfeiffer said. "I talked to him the other day."

Pfeiffer, who knew the man, said he didn’t even think about the gravity of the situation until it was over.

"I pretty much had blacked everything out, just focusing on what I was doing," he said. "You feel the effects afterward, the exhaustion, when you’re doing the report."

Pfeiffer received a lifesaving award for his work on May 5, and an exceptional service award for his effort in the May 11 incident.

At its Nov. 24 meeting, the Borough Council honored both officers with resolutions.

"They serve residents extremely well, and we’re proud to have them on the police force," Zagnit said.