A Georgia police officer is being hailed a hero after he revived a cyclist who collapsed on the road while he was on patrol in southwest Atlanta last Saturday.
Atlanta Police Officer Jaleel Tulloch told FOX 5 Atlanta he was having a "regular, normal" day when he stopped at a stop sign at the intersection of Sandtown Road and Central Villa Drive. While stopped, Officer Tulloch motioned for a man on a bike to cross in front of his car.
Seconds later, the man collapsed on the road. Noticing the man was struggling to breathe and not moving, Tulloch said he could immediately tell this was a "life-or-death situation" and he jumped out of his car.
"You could see in his face. He was like, ‘Do not let me die. Just do everything you can for me,'" Tulloch said.
Bodycam footage showed the officer springing into action.
"He's not breathing?" Tulloch is heard asking a second cyclist while approaching the scene.
The person responded with, "I don't think so."
Tulloch immediately started chest compressions and started talking to the man who appeared to be fading in and out of consciousness, "Come on. Stay. Come on. You alright?"
The officer told FOX 5 he could tell the man was scared, so he kept calling out his name, so the man knew he was still there.
"As I’m doing it, I’m praying the whole time," Tulloch said.
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Eventually, the man regained consciousness while Tulloch was issuing compressions. The Atlanta Fire Department and Grady EMS arrived shortly after to take over and transport the man to the hospital.
"It’s something that came natural to me. I just went to what I remember in my training," Tulloch said. "I would love for someone to do that for my family if they were in need."
Grady EMS called Tulloch a hero and even sent him a letter of commendation for his quick thinking, but the officer said he was just doing his job.
"This is just something I do, and I love what I do. I’ll do it every time," Tulloch said.
Atlanta police said the cyclist, who has only been identified as Greg, is recovering.
"We’d like to also thank and acknowledge officer Tulloch for his life-saving efforts that day, as well as wish the cyclist a path to wellness during his recovery," Atlanta PD wrote on Facebook.
