Pvt. Kyle Wiley joins a growing list of off-duty Toledo Firefighters that have been involved in saving a life through C.P.R. Pvt. Wiley was attending the funeral of his grandmother when he saw a man in distress. Pvt. Wiley went to aid the gentleman, assessed the man and found no pulse. He immediately began C.P.R. and requested someone call 9-1-1 and explain what had happened.
A nurse from out of town that was present joined in to attempt ventilations while Pvt. Wiley continued compressions. After several minutes of C.P.R., the man began to come around and actually began to talk to Pvt. Wiley. He remained conscious throughout the arrival of Engine Company 25 and Life Squad 6 who took over patient care and transported the patient to the hospital.
This is a great story on its own, but it gets better when you look back at the previous several months. This episode is the fourth occurrence of off-duty Toledo firefighters and C.P.R. intervention.
On July 15, 2013, Pvt. Mike Fuelling was off-duty when he saved the life of a gentleman that collapsed while traveling with his wife. Pvt. Fuelling pulled the man from the car and began C.P.R. in the right lane of I-75 south bound as cars whisked by.
Then on November 14, 2013, Lieutenants Craig Ellis and Kevin Gordon were present at a University of Michigan football game and saved the life of a bystander that had suffered a heart attack. Within minutes following that save, as Lt. Gordon returned to his duties as an usher, he was called to the Press Box for a second cardiac arrest and saved yet another individual.
These stories above are remarkable due to the fact that most patients who suffer out-of-hospital cardiac arrests die before arrival at a hospital. Most patients do not awaken because of C.P.R., but C.P.R. can double a victim’s chance of survival because C.P.R. helps to maintain vital blood flow to the heart and brain.
According to the American Heart Association approximately 75-80% of all out-of-hospital cardiac arrests happen at home, so being trained to perform C.P.R. can mean the difference between life and death.
What can you do to give someone a chance at survival? —– Learn C.P.R.!!