Acworth officer saves choking woman, inspires entire department upgrade

ACWORTH, Ga - An Acworth police officer saved a woman's life. Her actions led to a change in the entire police department.  

The call came on March 19. A resident at Brickmont Assisted Living had choked on some food and could barely breathe.  

Officer Tamara Severtson raced to the facility knowing that there was no time to waste.  

The officer says the staff had tried the Heimlich maneuver several times, but it did not work.  

"I ran inside and was able to locate the female patient in her wheelchair, she was slumped over. She was blue, she was not breathing at the time," said Officer Severtson. 

The woman was placed on the floor on her back and the officer used a choking rescue device called LifeVac. The officer's body camera video shows her placing a mask over the woman's nose and mouth. She then pushes down on what appears to be a plunge, then firmly pulls it up. 

"I used it about four times, and each time I was able to dislodge food from her airway. At that point, she was able to breathe again, and she got some of her color back," said Officer Severson. 

Paramedics took the woman to the hospital to be checked out, and she's doing well.  

Officer Severtson personally bought a LifeVac for her family, in case, she ever needed it, then threw an extra one in her patrol car.  

When the police chief heard that it saved a woman's life, he decided everyone in the department needed to carry one.  

"He was 100% on board, said, ‘Let's go for it.’ And they bought one for every officer in the police department," said Acworth Police Cpl. Eric Mistretta. 

Officer Severtson has now been nominated to be honored with a lifesaving award. 

"We are trained to go into situations where it's hectic, where it's chaotic, where someone's life is on the line, and we're trained to save them--and that's what I did," said Officer Severtson.