HAMBLEN COUNTY, Tenn. — The Hamblen County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday that two officers and a nurse received Letters of Commendation for saving a woman's life inside of the Hamblen County Jail.
They said the woman was found unresponsive on September 10, and she did not have a pulse after ingesting a kind of contraband that had been smuggled into the lockup. Staff immediately administered Narcan and started performing CPR, according to a release from HCSO.
The inmate was taken to the hospital and released the same day, according to the release. Chief Deputy Bob Ellis said if the staff had been slower or did not perform CPR, the Narcan would most likely have been useless.
The officers were identified as Angela Hodge and Cassie Bell. Nurse Brandy Klein was also commended, and Mayor Bill Brittain handed all three of them the letters commending their action.
"Their dedication to their job and the people they oversee is exemplary," he said in a release.
Sheriff Chad Mullins said they are working to prevent contraband from being smuggled into the jail. He said jail staff is training on a body scanner recently bought by the county, meant to deter people from bringing illegal items to the jail.
He also said congratulated the three for saving a life.
“I’ve watched the video footage of the incident and I’m proud of how quickly and proficiently they handled what could have been a disastrous situation," he said in a release. "Not only did their training pay off, but their natural instincts to save someone’s life also kicked in.”