Almost two weeks after nearly drowning in a D.C. pool, a Maryland woman came face-to-face (virtually) with one of the good Samaritans who saved her life.
On July 13 at around 6 p.m., Tamaira Williams and a friend were spotted at the bottom of the deep end of the Fort Lincoln Pool in Washington, D.C.
“I’m not from D.C., and we weren't even supposed to be at that pool that day, but we went there and thank God that’s where we were,” Williams said.
Incredibly, Dr. Jermaine Hunter, a CPR coach and one of the first people to attend to Williams and her friend, said he wasn't supposed to be there either.
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"I wasn't even going to go, so there you have it. I was like, 'Eh, I don't really want to go to the pool,'" he said.
Williams fought back tears with a big smile as she met Hunter on Tuesday, 12 days after the mother and grandmother nearly lost her life.
“I know I said I’m not going to cry, so we’re not going to do that. No crying, no crying, I've been crying for days,” Williams said.
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“I’m just, I am just so happy to see you like, wow,” Hunter said.
Hunter, a group of lifeguards and good Samaritans were nearby when Williams and her friend went under. He didn't hesitate.
Once Williams and her friend were pulled from the pool, Hunter and the others got to work.
“You must have heard [the rescue], because when I tell you I was rooting, I was like, ‘Come on! Let's go!’... and just to see you now, it’s like, this was just a couple weeks ago and you look great!” Hunter said.
When the two met on Tuesday, the video call was all smiles.
“I wanted to really say thank you, because I know those first initial compressions were really what saved our lives,” Williams said. "So I'm just so grateful to you."
Now, she is home from the hospital and well on her road to recovery.
Hunter asked Williams about her friend, and she confirmed that he was doing well, too.
“We both made a full recovery, both got out of the hospital around the same time,” she said.
In fact, she was released from the hospital last Thursday – on Hunter’s birthday.
Days later, Williams reached out to News4 so that she could thank Hunter and the first responders for herself.
“You definitely inspired me to want to learn how to do some CPR and things like that, too,” she told Hunter.
“You tell me when you’re ready and I will be more than happy to teach you, your friends and family,” he responded.
While Williams waits to get strong enough for those lessons, she said the experience taught her an important life lesson she will never forget.
“Just a lot of joy and just gratefulness and gratitude, and I’m, I’m almost speechless,” she said. “And it was very important to meet him and say thank you because we cannot take things for granted, you know? You didn't have to be there that day, so I really just wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. I have a lot of people who love me, who need me to be here, so I'm just grateful. I had to be able to say thank you face-to-face.”
Williams said she’s still in a little bit of pain because she suffered a broken sternum and broken ribs. But again, she is grateful to be alive and for everyone who helped when she needed it most.
