Emergency situations can be scary even for adults, but when Kerry Cochrane collapsed in front of his young sons, they took immediate action to save their dad.
The Cochrane family was holidaying at a Southport caravan park in July 2025 when Kerry started to experience stroke symptoms, including weakness and slurred speech.
At the time, Kerry’s wife Laura was working in Brisbane for the day, so Kerry was “flying solo”, with his three young sons, Levi (10), Kobe (7) and Loui (5), but the boys' reactions proved age was no barrier as they made all the right moves to get help underway.
Levi dialled Triple Zero (000) and spoke with Emergency Medical Dispatcher (EMD) Amy who asked him the important questions.
“What is the town or suburb of your emergency?” Amy asked.
Despite the new location, Levi told Amy exactly where they were and even provided the campsite number.
Levi calmly described his dad’s symptoms to Amy which helped her ensure the appropriate help was on its way.
When Runaway Bay paramedics Nick Oxley and Jaime Pryor arrived at the caravan park, Levi had already gone out to the the front gate to wait, leaving it open ready to flag the team down, while Kobe and Loui stayed with their dad to comfort him.
Thanks to the children’s quick thinking, the paramedics were able to get Kerry to hospital where he received further lifesaving treatment.
Paramedic Jaime, who had worked as an Emergency Call Handler (ECH) as part of her pathway into QAS’s officer ranks, said even adults often failed to remain as the level-headed as Levi had.
“Listening to Levi’s Triple Zero (000) call, I was incredibly impressed by how calm and helpful he was when speaking with the EMD,” Jaime said.
“Nick and I were also very impressed by his actions on scene when he flagged us down and took us to his dad – his efforts made it so much easier for us to give Kerry the best possible help.”
In recognition of the Cochrane children’s bravery, paramedics Jaime and Nick proudly presented the boys with a Certificate of Bravery and some QAS teddy bears at the Kedron Emergency Services Complex last month.
Jaime and Nick also gave the family a tour, showing them through the Brisbane Operations Centre so the boys could see the behind-the-scenes of the Triple Zero (000) process.