Good Samaritans rescue infant, toddler from Texas floodwaters
CPR was performed on the unresponsive infant whose condition is improving.
— -- A deadly weekend of storms and tornadoes claimed at least 14 lives in parts of the South and Midwest this weekend, but the toll could have been higher if not for a group of good Samaritans who rushed to rescue a father, toddler, and infant from their truck that had flipped over and was submerged in rushing water.
Video shot on a cell phone by local resident Tom Mitchell in Myrtle Springs, Texas, and provided to ABC affiliate WFAA shows a group of people struggling against the current of water to open the vehicle's doors and rescue the people inside.
Then one of the rescuers rushes from the vehicle carrying an unresponsive infant.
Mitchell at that point puts down his to start CPR on the baby.
The video continues as Mitchell labors works to save the baby's life, with a woman heard praying for the child's life.
“Dear Jesus, please let this baby breathe," the woman says in the video. “Dear Jesus, please let this baby breathe."
WFAA-TV reported that the father, infant and toddler are now on the mend.
The daring rescue added a positive note to an otherwise tragic weekend. Among the victims of the severe weather in Texas and several other states were several children and senior citizens.
Mitchell told WFAA that the rescue of the family trapped in the video testified to the strength of his community.
“I think it shows how the community and strangers all come together," he said.