Teacher in 20s in Gwangju Survives Miraculously After 40 Minutes of Cardiac Arrest Caused by Lightning Strike

Discharged from Jeonnam National University Hospital after 28 Days of Treatment
"Thanks to Medical Staff" Donates 10 Million Won

"I consider the professor who never gave up on me and treated me until the end as my second father."

News has been reported that a teacher in his 20s who collapsed after being struck by lightning and fell into cardiac arrest has recovered his health and been discharged 28 days after the accident. The teacher donated a sponsorship fund, asking that it be used for the medical staff who treated him.

Professor Jo Yong-su (left) of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Chonnam National University Hospital and Mr. Kim Gwan-haeng [Photo by Chonnam National University Hospital]

Chonnam National University Hospital announced on the 12th, "Kim Gwanhaeng (29), who collapsed after being struck by lightning in Gwangju last August, completed 28 days of treatment and was discharged on the 2nd." Kim, who works as a teacher at a high school in Gwangju, was struck by lightning and collapsed on the school grounds while walking to have lunch during training at Chosun University on the 5th of last month. On that day, a total of 39 lightning strikes were observed in Gwangju by 3 p.m., and it is presumed that Kim was electrocuted as he passed by a tree on the school grounds where lightning had struck.

A nearby citizen called 119 and performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but Kim was transported to the emergency medical center at Chonnam National University Hospital in a state of cardiac arrest. At the hospital, Kim barely regained breathing and pulse, but multiple organs were already damaged due to the heart having stopped for about 40 minutes. When the heart stops for just 5 minutes, blood and oxygen supply ceases, making damage to the heart, lungs, and even the brain highly likely.

Although Kim’s chances of survival were slim, the emergency medicine team at Chonnam National University Hospital did not give up. Professor Jo Yongsoo of the Department of Emergency Medicine recalled, "Honestly, at first, I thought the chances of survival were almost none, but since the patient was young and had come to our emergency room, we wanted to do our best to save him."

Professor Jo stated, "Because cardiac arrest had lasted for a long time, the condition of the heart and lungs was very poor, so we urgently performed ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) in the emergency room." Afterwards, Kim was moved to the intensive care unit and received focused treatment on his heart and lungs with ECMO for three days. On the first night of hospitalization, he faced the worst conditions, including multiple organ failure and disseminated intravascular coagulation causing uncontrollable bleeding, but Kim ultimately overcame the crisis safely. He then recovered enough to be taken off the ventilator 10 days after admission.

Professor Jo explained, "Lightning strike patients are rarely encountered, so it is difficult to accumulate treatment experience, making treatment more challenging. Kim not only suffered lightning injuries but also post-cardiac arrest syndrome, which made treatment even more difficult." He added, "Above all, the patient’s strong will to live and mental strength seem to have led to this good outcome."

Kim, a third-year teacher, is a homeroom teacher for first-year students and teaches Korean language at a high school in Gwangju. Although he was discharged in good health, he still finds walking difficult and cannot yet promise a return to school due to eating disorders, muscle weakness, and heel skin damage caused by the prolonged hospitalization.

However, Kim said, "Professor Jo, who gave me a second life, is my second father," and added, "I will strive to live each day without regrets." After discharge, he donated 10 million won as a development sponsorship fund with a message of thanks, asking that it be used for the emergency medicine medical staff.