Citizen Collapses While Playing Badminton... Firefighter Saves with Emergency Treatment

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Performed on a Citizen Exercising at the Same Gym

News has been reported that a firefighter who happened to be at the same gym saved a citizen who collapsed from cardiac arrest through emergency treatment.

CPR stock photo.

According to the Gangwon Provincial Fire Headquarters on the 14th, on the 7th at around 7:45 p.m., Mr. A, a man in his 50s and a member of a badminton club, suddenly collapsed at the gymnasium of Hyoje Elementary School in Chuncheon City.

At that time, Fire Lieutenant Jang Young-hoon (49), who was playing badminton at the same gym on his day off, heard people murmuring and ran toward the source of the noise.

There, Mr. A, whom Lieutenant Jang had known for a long time from the same club, was collapsed showing symptoms of hyperventilation.

Lieutenant Jang asked another club member to call 119 and immediately started cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). However, despite his emergency treatment, Mr. A’s consciousness and breathing gradually faded.

Lieutenant Jang told the member who was asked to make the call, "Please call 119 again and ask them to bring an automated external defibrillator (AED)," and continued CPR.

Soon after, 119 paramedics arrived at the scene. Lieutenant Jang helped the paramedics move Mr. A into the ambulance.

Mr. A was in a state of ventricular fibrillation, where the heart beats irregularly and cannot contract properly to circulate blood.

Accordingly, Lieutenant Jang and the paramedics administered two shocks to Mr. A using a defibrillator.

Thanks to their actions, Mr. A’s heartbeat temporarily returned, but on the way to the hospital, he went into cardiac arrest again. However, Lieutenant Jang and the paramedics continued their relentless efforts, and as a result, Mr. A regained breathing and consciousness before arriving at the hospital.

Fortunately, Mr. A recovered his health at the hospital and is scheduled to be discharged on the same day.

Jang Young-hoon (49), Fire Lieutenant of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Fire Headquarters. [Image source: Provided by Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Fire Headquarters]

Lieutenant Jang said, "I have worked as a paramedic for 13 years during my firefighting career, but I had never revived a cardiac arrest patient before, so this incident will remain a particularly memorable experience."

He added, "Since the members of the club I exercise with are relatively older, I have always thought that as a firefighter, I should be the first to run and provide aid when someone collapses or gets injured during exercise. I hope Mr. A fully recovers and visits the gym again."