Erin Harris, of Ottumwa, thought the male jogger didn’t look too well, as she drove along busy North Court St. in Ottumwa, on Friday afternoon, Jan. 23. It was an unusually warm day, school was letting out, and people were out and about getting ready for the weekend. When the jogger listed to one side, then fell over on the edge of the sidewalk, she knew something was terribly wrong. Without thinking, she jerked her car into a driveway of the Ottumwa Country Club. She slammed her car into park, jumped out, leaving the car door wide open. One look at the jogger told her he needed help. He was turning purplish blue, and didn’t appear to be breathing. She thought she might know him, and hollered, “Randy, are you all right?” There was no response.
A pickup truck had pulled to the side of the road, and a man was getting out. She shouted at the man to call an ambulance.
Candy Breon, and her husband, Erv, of Hedrick, were driving along North Court Street. They had come to Ottumwa for Friday afternoon grocery shopping. Just driving around looking at things on a warm, winter afternoon, they typically would not have been on this busy street. Candy is an EMT with Keokuk County Ambulance, and teaches CPR. Seeing the commotion and the man down, they pulled over. Her training kicked in. She left the car and went to the scene. Her husband reached in the back of the car for Candy’s First Responder Kit. It was not there.
Candy checked the downed jogger for a pulse. There was no pulse. The jogger was laying on his side, part way in the bushes beside the sidewalk. She had to get him on his back on a solid surface. Once she got him in position, she commenced CPR.
The driver of the pickup, Mike McDonough, is a retired Ottumwa police officer. He retrieved a CPR mask from his truck, and assisted with the breathing, while Candy did chest compressions. A passing motorist hollered, “We’re praying for you!”
Candy felt ribs break under the palm of her hand, which is normal for chest compressions. The jogger began to gasp, and fog the back of the CPR mask. A good sign.
The ambulance arrived. Candy told the paramedics, whom she knew, that they had the victim breathing. However, the paramedics determined that the victim was in a state of ventricular fibrillation. They used the paddles to shock him. Then shocked him again once he was on the gurney. The victim’s color was still terrible and, although breathing slightly, was still unresponsive. Candy thought to herself, “This guy will never make it.”
Never say never. The man was airlifted to Mercy hospital in Des Moines where bypass surgery was performed. 58-year old Randy Anderson of Ottumwa is alive and well today because of the quick response of these angels-in-disguise. In a previous newspaper article requesting that the people who saved his life come forward so that he could thank them, Erin and Candy contacted Randy. It was an emotional meeting. Both Erin and Candy feel that God put them there at that exact moment for a reason, and Randy feels he is alive for a reason. Randy starts back to work on Monday, March 16. He is an Assistant Information Director at Indian Hills Community College.
In a bizarre twist to the story, Andersons’ heirloom grandfather clock stopped at 3:06 p.m., the exact time the emergency call went into 911. They have not reset it.
Although Candy has performed CPR many times, this was her first save. Congratulations, Candy!
Heart disease is the number-one killer behind auto accidents. Do you know CPR?
Have a good story? Call or text Curt Swarm in Mt. Pleasant at 319-217-0526 or email him at curtswarm@yahoo.com.