HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah -- A frantic father, a choking baby, a desperate situation.
In what could be described as the right place at the right time with the right person, an Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center Detachment 3 spouse saved a neighbor’s choking child at Hill AFB, Utah.
In March 2024, Hannah Hadley was at home recovering after the birth of her third child with her mother’s help. Hannah was getting ready to sit down to dinner with her family when she was alerted to someone at her door. With her husband, Master Sgt. Rodney Hadley, deployed, she was hesitant to open the door.
Through her doorbell camera she saw her next-door neighbor holding his limp baby daughter that he found unresponsive in the baby’s playroom. The father grabbed the child and ran next door to Hannah’s House, not knowing that Hannah is a nurse.
When Hannah answered the door, she found the child was not breathing and turning blue. She told her mother to call 911 and began assessing the child’s condition. Thinking the child might have a blocked airway she began working to clear it.
Having just had a baby, Hannah didn’t have the core strength to hold the child standing up to begin clearing her airway, so she adapted to a sitting position and starting applying back thrusts to the baby until the blockage was dislodged and the baby starting crying and breathing.
By the time paramedics arrived, 11 minutes had elapsed. Hannah’s quick response ensured the baby survived and made a full recovery. Hannah is convinced everything lined up exactly as needed to produce the best possible result.
The AFOTEC Detachment 3 Commander Lt. Col. Adam Rector found out what happened when Hannah’s husband reached out from his deployed location. “We began immediately looking for a way to recognize Hannah and eventually decided to create our own award and name it after her,” said Rector.
While the Hadleys have since departed AFOTEC Detachment 3 for a new assignment overseas, the impact of Hannah’s quick actions live on in the award named after her for that spring day when she was the right person in the right place at the right time.