Parks are a popular destination for kids’ birthday parties. They’re a hotspot for kids anyway and provide plenty of free and familiar entertainment.
But occasionally the obstacles prove to be just as dangerous as they are fun, whether through maintenance issues or user error.
One five-year-old’s day went from fun and games to misery after he managed to break his arm on a slide and became trapped at a park in Iowa.
Thankfully a kind-hearted firefighter arrived with other first responders and worked to keep the young boy, River, comforted. His efforts did not go unnoticed, and the boy’s grateful mother reached out to the City of Norwalk, Iowa, social media to publicly thank him.
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Over the weekend Maria Renzo wrote the following We are so incredibly thankful for the men and women of the NFD! pic.twitter.com/ExcGoqMqWE
— City of Norwalk, Iowa (@NorwalkCH) May 23, 2022
“I just wanted to give a huge shoutout to the Norwalk Fire Department,” the post read.
“Especially to Mark.
“My 5-year-old was at a birthday party today at the park on Lexington. He fell down the slide & broke his arm. He was stuck inside the tube slide & the fire department was AMAZING!
“Mark did not leave River’s side until the ambulance got to the hospital. He went above and beyond for my son & I can’t thank them all enough!
“My mama heart cannot tell you how lucky we were to have them with us during this scary time.
“We live on the South Side in Des Moines & I just wanted to shout out how amazing we were treated. THANKS AGAIN NORWALK.”
Firefighter Mark Muerner said that comforting the young boy was just part of his job.
“‘I’ll be here with you. I’ve got you. I won’t let anything else happen to you,'” he recalled saying in an interview with KCCI-TV.
“And just giving him that reassurance. Always looking at him … you know, doing my job, but also taking care of him because he is my job as well.”
Muerner continued to comfort the boy as he rode in the ambulance and got situated at the hospital.
The little boy’s arm was broken so severely that he was transferred to Iowa City for surgery, according to an update post from his mother, Maria Renzo.
The boy was able to go home on Sunday and is recovering well. Renzo is still in awe of the kindness shown to their family and has continued to sing Mark’s praises. Mark and River have become fast friends.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.