Île-Bizard

By Chelsey St-Pierre
The Suburban

“Bee!”   The shout cut through the backyard, instantly scattering the children in the pool. In a single moment, the easy rhythm of a summer birthday party in Île-Bizard dissolved into chaos. Water splashed as kids scrambled for the edge, their laughter replaced by startled shrieks. Parents looked up from their conversations and the barbecue, momentarily distracted by the sudden commotion. For a few seconds, confusion reigned as everyone tried to make sense of the unexpected rush.

Amid the scramble, seven-year-old Thakshana stayed in the pool, her hands gripping the edge, eyes following the bee as it hovered closer. “The bee was following me, so I was going backwards and I went in the deep end holding on the edge,” she told The Suburban. “The bee got close to me and I let go of the edge.”

Another child, glancing back, realized something was terribly wrong as Thankshana’s body was sinking under the water. Shouts for help rang out. A man pulled Thakshana out of the water and laid her on the grass. She wasn’t breathing. Her pulse was gone. In the confusion, someone tried slapping her awake, desperate for a response.

Sandra Zagury, a physical education teacher who was at the party, described what happened next in an interview with The Suburban. She’d practiced CPR on dummies, but this was the first time she faced the real thing. Realizing that no one seemed to have any experience at all, she knew she was the little girl’s best shot at survival. “I just reacted,” Sandra said. She dropped to her knees and started chest compressions, focused only on bringing Thakshana back.

All around her was chaos — voices shouting, people weeping, children’s voices, instructions flying, panic setting in. “There was a couple yelling at me that I was killing her. People were screaming at me to stop,” Zagury recalled. Through the noise, she kept going, determined to do what needed to be done. Sandra explained that she was already carrying her own private burdens — medical and personal challenges that added to the difficulty of carrying out the task at hand — but at that moment, she decided that none of it mattered. After what felt like an eternity, Thakshana coughed up water and started to breathe.

Zagury broke down in tears, overwhelmed with relief. Paramedics arrived and checked Thakshana over. “They told me I did everything right. Her ribs were fine. She was okay. That’s all I cared about,” she said fighting back tears.

Even after saving a life, Zagury’s ordeal wasn’t over. As she stood crying, shaken by what had just happened, a woman from the party told her, “If you can’t keep yourself together, you should leave.” The woman’s husband who had also yelled at her during CPR later apologized, but the lack of gratitude left its mark. With very little thanks for saving the child’s life, Sandra returned home with her own child, left to deal with the trauma that had struck her and at a time where she was already overwhelmed.

For Uma, Thakshana’s mother, the day became a blur of dread and relief. Speaking with The Suburban, Uma described how it was the first time she’d left her daughters at a party without staying. “I stayed for about 15 minutes and then left, thinking they’d be fine,” Uma said. “Forty minutes later, my phone started ringing.” She missed the first call from someone at the party and when she tried to return the call, no one picked up. She began to sense something was wrong. Then another call came from the police. Uma rushed to the house, but when she arrived, the ambulance had already left. Without hesitation, she gathered her older daughter, Vegashana, who witnessed the entire event, and raced to the hospital.

Her husband had gone straight to the hospital when he heard what happened. The family reunited at the Children’s Hospital, where the relief of seeing Thakshana awake was overwhelming. “I still cry when I think of it,” Uma said.

The party, meant to be a joyful birthday celebration, became a lesson in how quickly life can change. “The hospital said she’s lucky to be alive,” Uma said.

For Zagury, the experience was a turning point. According to her, just weeks before, the English Montreal School Board had denied her request for a day off to renew her CPR certification. “I wrote to the principal, but my renewal was denied,” she said. Now, she says that she is more convinced than ever that CPR training is essential.

Two weeks after that June afternoon, Thakshana celebrated her eighth birthday surrounded by family — and with Sandra Zagury, the woman who saved her life, by her side. This was not just another birthday party. It was a celebration made possible by quick thinking, courage, and the willingness to do what’s right in the face of panic. Because of one hero’s actions, a little girl got to blow out her birthday candles and begin another year. 

Some regularly offered CPR programs on the West Island include courses offered at the YMCA, Red Cross, CPR Montreal and Spark Canada.