IOWA COUNTY, Wis. — An Iowa County sheriff's deputy administered the first dose of epinephrine to a woman whose severe allergic reaction rapidly worsened after a bee sting, according to a local report carrying the sheriff's office account.
WKOW reported Monday that the Iowa County Communications Center received a 911 call at about 4:36 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, for someone experiencing a severe allergic reaction after being stung by a bee. The caller initially reported hives, but the patient's condition worsened within minutes, according to the report.
The reported symptoms included difficulty breathing and swallowing, severe chest pressure and loss of vision. An unnamed Iowa County sheriff's deputy arrived and administered the first dose of epinephrine. Highland EMS arrived shortly afterward, continued treatment and gave a second dose, WKOW reported.
UW Health Med Flight was requested because of the seriousness of the woman's condition. The patient was transferred to the Med Flight crew for continued care, and Sheriff Michael Peterson later said she was home and recovering, according to the station.
A lifesaving tool had reached patrol deputies only weeks earlier
The timing makes the response especially notable. The sheriff's office placed epinephrine auto-injectors into service July 25, equipping deputies, detectives and agency leaders with the tool in their vehicles, WKOW reported. The call came about six weeks later.
The agency received its initial supply through the Andrew Mueller Memorial Foundation. Sheriff Peterson said the donation put a lifesaving tool in the deputy's hands at the moment it was needed, according to WKOW.
Peterson said deputies are often among the first to reach emergencies, particularly in rural communities, and that the first few minutes can make a difference. The source does not name the responding deputy; Peterson is the sheriff quoted after he spoke with the patient.
The official Iowa County government directory independently confirms the sheriff's office and county emergency-management structure. The public incident details in this article, however, come from WKOW's report of the sheriff's office account.
What the public account establishes—and what it does not
The available report establishes a Sept. 6 response following a bee sting, rapidly worsening symptoms, the deputy's first dose of epinephrine before Highland EMS arrived, additional treatment and a second dose from EMS, transfer to a Med Flight crew, and a reported recovery at home. It does not identify the woman, provide a street address or publish medical records.
ThinBlueNews is not adding those details or offering individual medical advice. Severe allergic reactions require emergency care; this story is about a deputy's documented response and the value of placing trained personnel and time-critical equipment closer to residents.
In a rural jurisdiction, patrol deputies may arrive during the gap before an ambulance reaches the scene. Here, recently donated equipment was present for the program's first publicly reported field use.
Readers can find more verified public-safety coverage in ThinBlueNews' positive police news and law enforcement news sections.
Sources and visual disclosure
- WKOW — Iowa County deputy saves woman's life with EpiPen, published Sept. 7, 2026.
- Iowa County, Wisconsin — Sheriff's Office and Emergency Management official directory.
- AngelHM / Wikimedia Commons — contextual adrenaline auto-injector photograph, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Source boundary: the incident narrative relies on one current local-news report that explicitly attributes the details to the Iowa County Sheriff's Office. ThinBlueNews did not independently obtain the incident report, dispatch audio, body-camera footage, medical records or a direct agency release.
Visual note: the featured image is a licensed contextual photograph of epinephrine auto-injector equipment. It does not depict the Iowa County call, the deputy, the woman or the exact injector used. The source photo was cropped and received a restrained headline/disclosure overlay; no people or incident scene were synthesized.
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