In early May in Cos Cob, Brittany Piro, 39 weeks pregnant with her second child, went into labor. However, something was not right, as she said during the event held on the 13th to honor the hard work and immediate response from the GEMS team.
“He was without oxygen three minutes after he was born,” her husband Matt said, bringing context to the seriousness of the situation.
During the ceremony, Brittany Piro extends her appreciation and gratitude to the team saying, “they saved his life.” Both parents are grateful for the diligence shown by the Greenwich Emergency Medical Service in keeping both mother and son, Benjamin, alive.
Anthony Vontobel, paramedic of 18 years, and his three members, including EMT Scott Baxter who took the call, were thanked by the couple for their immediate response, arriving at the scene in just five minutes.
“We treat every emergency the same. We adapt and deal with it,” Vontobel remarked.
Matt Piro said, “the quick response from Anthony and his team really saved his life.” Responding to their call and rushing to their side at the time, made all the difference in saving them.
The GEMS team then took Brittany to the hospital, where they performed an emergency C-Section.
Matt showed his respect for the team saying, “It saved our family. It saved his life. It saved her life. We couldn’t be more thankful.”
Vontobel said, “driving from one end of town to the other. It’s not an easy task.” Bringing into light not only the stress of his job, but also the reward he gets from helping others.
From the moment they arrived on the scene and brought Brittany to the hospital, Matt says, “Anthony knew exactly what to do.” The family is eternally grateful for GEMS and in what they do for the Greenwich community.
Fred Camillo lends out his gratitude towards the GEMS team as well during the ceremony saying, “What you did there impacted a whole family and we can’t thank you enough.”
Everyone said that it was a ‘miracle’ he survived.
