A mum was forced to sit through a ride at Disneyland while trying to revive her unconscious son who had passed out just 20 seconds into his “favorite” attraction.
Christine Tagle said she and her family had just boarded the park’s Guardians of the Galaxy ride in August when she noticed her five-year-old son was unconscious. Writing about the frightening incident on a Facebook group dedicated to tips and tricks for navigating the massive park, she said she “couldn’t get him to wake up” throughout the “whole ride”.
The mum said she couldn’t remove her son from the ride until it was over when she was left “screaming for help” and attempting CPR before staff stepped in. She wrote: “When the ride was over I pulled him out screaming for help, the staff directed me to a hallway where I laid my son down and I began CPR a few seconds later the staff shocked him with the AED.”
Christine added that, during the attempts to revive her son, her husband rushed to look for additional help and tracked down a couple who had worked as a nurse and emergency responder. They took over from the distressed mum and kept the five-year-old stable until a working EMT arrived.
The mum explained that they only later discovered the five-year-old was suffering from a genetic heart condition that flared up when he was aboard the ride. Christine said he is now alive and well because doctors acted quickly and were able to identify the condition – catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT) – and she praised quick-thinking Disney staff.
She said: “My Son is alive, my son lived because when his (now we know) genetic heart disease presented itself we were at Disney where there is an AED everywhere. My son is alive because we were at Disney with trained staff. My son is alive because of this couple. My son is alive because I was trained in CPR.”
Christine urged people reading her post to train in CPR and asked for the couple who helped her family to come forward so she could thank them. She concluded: “Disney always had my heart, but now they own it, they have my thanks, and I am in debt to them forever and ever.”
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