CATLETTSBURG, Ky. (WCHS) — A grandmother in Catlettsburg, Ky., awakened in the hospital this weekend to find that her 11-year-old granddaughter saved her life.
“I would’ve never thought she’d be able to do something like that,” Donna Duncan said.
Donna came home from the hospital Tuesday after being in the intensive care unit and on life support.
Aubrey Johnson, a fifth-grader at Catlettsburg Elementary, found her grandmother Thursday night on the floor. After calling 911, she gave her grandmother life-saving CPR until ambulances could come to the residence.
“I wasn’t crying. I guess because I knew if I was crying, then I couldn’t do it,” Aubrey said.
Donna said all she remembers is waking up in the hospital two days later.
“She’s 11. I would’ve never thought she’d be able to do something like that. She told me I was purple,” Donna said.
Aubrey recalls that her grandmother wasn’t breathing, and she couldn’t hear her heartbeat. The 911 operator walked Aubrey through giving her grandmother mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
“I wouldn’t say it was hard (to perform CPR), but it was scary at the moment,” Aubrey said. “I wasn’t sure if she was going to make it or not.”
Aubrey has lived with her grandparents since 2019, when Aubrey’s mother passed away.
“She’s been through a lot in her little life, but she’s a good kid,” Donna said.
Donna returned home Tuesday after spending some time on life support, fighting chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and a heart attack.
“I feel fine. Just tired, but I feel fine. I feel great,” Donna said.
The pair told Eyewitness News they like to watch TV and go fishing together.
“She tried to catch a fish on (Grandpa’s) pole, which is open-faced,” Aubrey said with a laugh. “She can’t use one, so it got tangled and stuff and it was his new pole.”
Aubrey said when she grows up, she wants to be a doctor or a nurse.
“I like helping people a lot,” she said.
https://wchstv.com/news/local/11-year-old-performs-cpr-saves-grandmothers-life
