Police officer turns hero to save baby Alexei's life at Wolverhampton home

Gazing up at police officer Sgt Ron Price, it's almost as if little Alexei Kandare knows about the special bond the two share.

Sgt Ron Price with baby Alexei Kandare, Alexei's gran Susan Pettey, mother Hayley Haycock and six-year-old sister Ellie

The quick-thinking police officer helped resuscitate eight-month-old Alexei after she suffered a fit and stopped breathing at her home in Wolverhampton.

Sgt Price sprang into action when Alexei's panicked family banged on his door calling for help. Now a picture of health, Alexei and her family gathered to thank Sgt Price.

Hayley Haycock, Alexei's mother, was at her home in Pennwood Court, off Leasowes Drive, Merry Hill, when she noticed something was wrong. "At first we thought Alexei was choking because she seemed to be having trouble breathing so we called the doctor straight away who told us to take her to hospital," said the 25-year-old mother-of-two.

"By the time we got downstairs, Alexei had just dropped in my arms and wasn't breathing." Alexei's grandmother Susan Pettey took the baby and rushed to Sgt Price's office at the block of flats.

"I heard a loud bang on the door and opened it to see Susan with the baby in her arms," said Sgt Price.

"She wasn't very responsive. Initially, we thought she was choking so we were doing everything we could to try to check if anything was stuck in her mouth or blocking her airways."

Helped by a passer-by, Sgt Price phoned paramedics, who talked him through what he had to do. Sgt Price managed to get Alexei breathing before paramedics arrived to take her to hospital.

The officer, who has been with the force for almost 20 years, then organised a police escort to get her to New Cross Hospital as quickly as possible.

After three days in hospital in Stoke, Alexei was allowed to return home with her mother and six-year-old sister Ellie.

Sgt Price said: "It is probably the scariest thing I've ever done in my life. I went on holiday the day after it happened and I kept phoning the family to see how she was – I was so thrilled to hear she was OK.

"The first thing I did when I got back was to go and see her. It was so lovely to be greeted by her lovely big smile"

Miss Haycock said: "We are really grateful to Ron – if it wasn't for him and his team, I don't think she would have made it."

Alexei's grandmother Miss Pettey said: "He was brilliant."

Alexei is now fit and healthy again. Doctors believe the fit may have been brought on by a lack of salt.