On Monday evening, January 5, Port Authority Police Officer Elijah Ali was on patrol in the vicinity of JFK Airport Terminal 4 when he was approached by a young mother, fraught with fear, about her 2-year-old child choking on a piece of candy. The child was in the mother’s vehicle. The officer immediately responded, assessed the child and determined the child was choking. He positioned the child and performed back blows between the child’s shoulder blades. The officer’s actions successfully dislodged the obstruction, allowing the child to breathe freely.
The Port Authority reported that the mother said, “I hopped out of my car and ran to his (officer) window and told him my son was choking. He ran straight to my car and to my son. I was incredibly grateful.”
Police Officer Ali, a three-year PAPD veteran, has in the past saved two people’s lives by administering Narcan. According to the Port Authority, Ali commented, “The commitment to serving and helping others is the reason I chose this profession, and it’s what brings me the greatest sense of fulfillment.”
Port Authority police officers are trained in the academy and constant in-service training to perform in difficult and intense situations with professionalism and dedication to the public’s safety. The Port Authority PBA is grateful for Police Officer Ali’s actions, which represented the high standards and expectations of Port Authority PBA members.