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How I Tried to Save Jett Travolta

Updated 10:46 PM EDT, Tue, Jan 6, 2009

John and Kelly both rode with Jett to the hospital in the ambulance. John was holding his son's hand and a tearful Kelly was rubbing Jett's hand saying, "Come on, baby, come on Jett."

 

The EMT who tried to save John Travolta's son said the boy's parents watched in horror as rescue workers tried to revive the 16-year-old chronically ill boy on the floor of their Bahama vacation home -- begging the unconscious teen to wake up as they rode with him in the ambulance to the hospital, Radar reported.

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The crew chief of the responding EMT unit, Marcus Garvey, told Radar online that Jett Travolta's mom, Kelly Preston, watched in horror as he and a doctor performed CPR and tried to revive the unconscious boy in the hallway of the family's Grand Bahama vacation home.

Garvey said the grief-stricken mother peppered him with questions as he worked to save Jett, who said there was a "minimal amount" of blood at the scene, the publication reported.

"Is he breathing? Are you helping him? Are you getting him back? Is he coming back?" Kelly asked.

Both parents rode with the boy in the ambulance. John held his son's hand, saying, "Come on, Jett."

Kelly was rubbing the boy's hand, saying through tears, "Come on baby, come on Jett."

Police Superintendent Basil Rahming has said a caretaker found Jett Travolta unconscious in a bathroom late Friday morning and he was later pronounced dead at a Freeport hospital. The youth was last seen entering the bathroom on Thursday, according to Rahming's police statement.

"We are heartbroken that our time with him was so brief. We will cherish the time we had with him for the rest of our lives," Travolta and Preston said in their first public statement since Jett's death.

"Jett was the most wonderful son that two parents could ever ask for and lit up the lives of everyone he encountered," said a statement posted Sunday on Travolta's Web site.

"We have received many messages of condolence from around the world and we want to thank everyone for their prayers and support. It has meant so much to us. It is a beautiful reminder of the inherent goodness in the human spirit that gives us hope for a brighter future."

Preston and Travolta have said that Jett became very sick when he was 2-years old and was diagnosed with Kawasaki Syndrome, an illness that leads to inflamed blood vessels in young children. Preston blamed household cleaners and fertilizers, and said that a detoxification program based on teachings from the Church of Scientology helped improve his health, according to People magazine. Others said Jett was prone to seizures.

Michael McDermott, an attorney for the actor, said Sunday that although Jett was last seen Thursday and found the following day, he doesn't believe that the teen was in the bathroom for a substantial amount of time.

"The police left the impression that the boy was unsupervised. No. There were two nannies with him for the entire evening," McDermott told The Associated Press. "They made it seem like he was sent to the condo and nobody checked in on him until the next morning."

"(Jett) was spectacularly supervised," said McDermott, who said he has not had the chance to talk to the two nannies himself.

McDermott said he had no knowledge of Jett's medical history but "understood he had a history of seizures." It is unclear whether Jett was taking medication for that.

The Bahamas' health minister, Dr. Hubert Minnis, has said that a second, U.S.-certified pathologist will fly in at dawn Monday to assist with the teenager's autopsy.

"I have spoken to (Travolta) and informed him that the government is doing everything it can," Minnis said Sunday, adding he could not disclose further specifics about the autopsy.

About a dozen security guards and Bahamian police officers patrolled Sunday around the luxury Old Bahama Bay resort community where Travolta and Preston remained inside their home. The white-sand beach in front of the suites was closed.

The couple also have an 8-year-old daughter, Ella Bleu.

Travolta, 54, is trying to finish funeral arrangements and hopes to fly his son's body to Florida by midweek, McDermott said. Travolta and Preston, 46, have a house in Ocala, Florida.

The Church of Scientology, established in 1945 by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, has attracted numerous celebrity followers, and among its more famed members is Travolta, who has long been one of Hollywood's biggest names.


Copyright Associated Press / NBC Connecticut

Comments (213)

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  • mikeyo Saturday, Jan 10 at 11:54 PM FLAG COMMENT Jetts room had chimes and alarm in it. why when he was entering the bathroom the chime went off ,but theres not one for him coming out off course because he took a fall ,what took the nannies so long to check on him,
  • Angie Friday, Jan 9 at 2:17 AM FLAG COMMENT This is truly heartbreaking. My deepest condolences to John and Kelly, at this point with so many tragedies I am crossing off the Bahamas from my travel list...Hang on there - its so unbelievably painful to lose your child...
  • spidey Thursday, Jan 8 at 9:33 PM FLAG COMMENT uh - hello - you people ever hear of HIPPA - that paramedic is violating the HIPPA privacy act that was instituted to protect patient information - he could be sued!
  • Leave them Alone ! Wednesday, Jan 7 at 1:45 AM FLAG COMMENT This family is already dealing with enough, can't people just allow them time to grieve. Everyone has their own beliefs and they are entitled to their beliefs and who can say who is right or wrong. Jett's life was taken because that was God's plan for him, and the people with negative comments that believe in God would know God has a plan for all of us and we are not supposed to question his plan. Leave these caring, loving an ... MORE >
  • Anonymous Tuesday, Jan 6 at 3:54 PM FLAG COMMENT To the Travolta family, may god bless you and your immediate family. Just by looking and reading about you, you both were and still are and awesome family, very caring and beautiful. May your son rest in peace. Take care and remember were just as devasted as you are.

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