Doctor Who Was in the 'Right Place at the Right Time' Saves 3-Year-Old Boy from Drowning in Hotel Pool
A doctor is being hailed a hero by New Jersey authorities after saving a young boy from drowning.
Dr. John Blundell — who works at the Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center in New York — was visiting the Garden State on Saturday when he helped rescue a 3-year-old who was drowning at a hotel pool in Montvale, New Jersey, according to Montvale Police Chief Joseph Sanfilippo.
Sanfilippo told NJ.com that Blundell jumped into action and performed CPR on the child, who was recovered by a family member from the three-foot end of the pool at the Courtyard by Marriott.
The physician managed to revive the boy just before first responders arrived to the scene, police said.
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“[It is] incredibly fortunate that the doctor ... was in the right place at the right time," Sanfilippo told NJ.com.
The boy was taken to Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, N.J., the outlet reported.
The Montvale Police Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
Blundell's employer later praised him for his heroic effort, writing on its Facebook alongside a photo of the doctor, "A hero is never off duty."
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According to the Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, Blundell is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and the Jagiellonian University Medical College in Krakow, Poland.
The hospital said that Blundell completed his post-graduate residency at SUNY Buffalo.
"A staff physician from Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center is being credited by police with saving the life of a toddler who was drowning in the swimming pool of a hotel in Montvale. NJ," the tribute read. "The physician, Dr. John Blundell, is one of our hospitalists -- physicians whose specialty is caring for hospital inpatients."
The medical center also called Blundell a "lifesaver" and "hero" in the touching post.
