CBP Officers Revive Unresponsive Man on MTA Light Rail at BWI station

by Press Release

BALTIMORE – A man is alive today thanks to the quick actions last night of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshal Airport (BWI).

At about 6:40 p.m. on Thursday, a train passenger notified CBP officers Alexandra Tejada-Kennedy and Darko of an unresponsive male on the MTA Light Rail train. The light rail station is located immediately outside of CBP’s Federal Inspection Service (FIS) area in Terminal E. Officers Tejada-Kennedy and Darko were walking past the rail station to their vehicles at the employee parking lot.

Officer Tejada-Kennedy, a certified CBP emergency medical technician (EMT), and Officer Darko responded immediately, assessed the situation, tried to revive the man, and then called CBP Officer Leaman, an on duty certified CBP EMT. Officer Darko also alerted local Emergency Medical Services (EMS) for assistance.

Officer Leaman and Supervisory CBP Officer De Dios immediately responded from CBP’s inspection station and found Officers Tejada-Kennedy, Darko and a third unnamed officer huddled around the unresponsive man.


Officer Leaman quickly assessed the man’s condition and suspected an overdose. Leaman rolled the man on his back, administered Naloxone (Narcan), and initiated assisted ventilations with a bag valve mask. The man did not revive after two minutes of assisted respirations, so Leaman administered a second dose of Narcan and continued assisted ventilations. With still no response after another two minutes of assisted ventilations, Leaman administered a third dose of Narcan that he was provided by Maryland Transportation Authority Police officers.


A minute later, the man reacted, sat up and exhibited signs of confusion and anxiousness. Officers Darko, Tejada-Kennedy and the unnamed officer supported the man until he regained awareness and was able to state his name and date of birth. At that time, Airport Emergency Medical Services arrived on scene, assumed care for the now recovered man, and took him to a local medical facility.

“The immediate and decisive actions by our Customs and Border Protection officers, and particularly the incredible life-saving skills demonstrated by our EMT-certified officers, will allow this man another chance at life. I am extraordinarily proud of the professionalism and compassion that our team extended to a fellow human being in medical distress,” said Adam Rottman, CBP’s Area Port Director for the Area Port of Baltimore.

CBP’s border security mission is led at ports of entry by CBP officers from the Office of Field Operations. CBP officers screen international travelers and cargo and search for illicit narcotics, unreported currency, weapons, counterfeit consumer goods, prohibited agriculture, and other illicit products that could potentially harm the American public, U.S. businesses, and our nation’s safety and economic vitality. Learn more about what CBP accomplished during “A Typical Day” in 2020

Please visit CBP Ports of Entry to learn more about how CBP’s Office of Field Operations secures our nation’s borders. Learn more about CBP at www.CBP.gov.

Follow the Director of CBP’s Baltimore Field Office on Twitter at @DFOBaltimore and on Instagram at @dfobaltimore for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation’s borders at and between official ports of entry. CBP is charged with securing the borders of the United States while enforcing hundreds of laws and facilitating lawful trade and travel.

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