Caught on camera: West Ridge Elementary School police officer Mike Stallone saves a girl from the path of a car in Park Ridge, NJ

Park Ridge, NJ – Quick action by an alert school police officer averted a tragedy in New Jersey.

Dramatic video provided by the Park Ridge Police Department shows the moment Officer Mike Stallone saved a kindergartner last week after she was nearly caught between two cars — one in motion — during class at West Ridge Elementary School in Park Ridge, Bergen County.

“Kindergarten went up, turned around to grab something,” Stallone said. “I felt I had to get her out of this danger immediately.”

Officer Stallone has been in law enforcement for over twenty years.

He is now a special executive officer for West Ridge, charged with making sure students are safe at all times while they are at school.

He’d only been in this job for three weeks, and in that short time, he had already proven his own worth.

“We’re here to do everything we can to try and make it a safe environment for kids,” he told Eyewitness News.

“Officer Stallone is a safety officer,” said Park Ridge Police Captain Joseph Rampolla. “With us here, we think of worst-case scenarios. But what happened to that little girl is something that would happen any day — or any other type of emergency where we have an officer on site ready to help.”

Officer Stallone says he views his role as more than just a job. It is a promise to this community.

“It makes me happy, kids are really precious,” he said. “It’s nice to be able to take care of the kids and make sure they have a great childhood here.”