A US sheriff's deputy became a life-saver when he resuscitated a 12-day-old baby after stopping a driver for speeding.

South Carolina officer Will Kimbro was awarded a "Life-Saving Medal" after saving the newborn girl during a routine patrol in Berkeley County last month.

Video of the incident, recorded on Deputy Kimbro's body camera and released by police, shows him taking the child from her mother after pulling the car over.

The baby's body was limp and blueish from a lack of oxygen, the sheriff's office said.

After asking the mother, who was sitting on the passenger's seat, for the baby's name, the deputy put the baby on her lap, checked for a pulse, and started massaging the child's heart.


In the clip, he says: "Come on baby, cry for me, cry for me. Open those eyes, sweetheart."

The baby starts crying and Deputy Kimbro says: "As long as she's crying like that, she's breathing. I want you to cry. Come on."

The officer continues: "I think she's gonna be okay. She's breathing."

He kept performing CPR as the baby's breathing resumed before stopping again.

After several minutes, the child's chest began moving and paramedics arrived to take over.

The baby was taken to a local hospital for observation and soon released, the sheriff's spokeswoman Carli Drayton said.

"As far as we know, the baby has been doing well," Ms Drayton added.

"Because of Deputy Kimbro's steadfast, professional and heroic response, the 12-day-old baby was able to live," the sheriff's office said on Facebook.