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BEULAH DUNN	CLAIRE CARNEGIE
DANIEL McCUNE	DANIEL McCUNE
FRANK PICHLER	HERBERT "JIM" SEWELL
JAMES SZEWCZYK	JOHN TRIELOFF
LESLIE BRYAN	LORETTA HEAROLD
WALLACE "BUD" CARL
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Posted: 09/26/12

Washington Township Fire Chief Dan Last recognized the bystanders who administered CPR to Linda Modzelewski and the first responders who came to her rescue during a Sept. 19 Board of Trustees meeting.

(Observer photo by Kim Scherer)

Washington heroes acted
instinctively to save life

by KIMBERLY SCHERER
Observer Special Writer

      It was a July day when Linda Modzelewski collapsed from a heart attack on a driveway shortly after arriving at a wedding reception.
       Her husband, Gerald, and two others, Jelena Doty and Rachel McCarl, who both happened to be registered nurses, began administering CPR.
       Washington Township Fire Chief Dan Last told the Board of Trustees during its Sept. 19 meeting, that when paramedics arrived, Modzelewski didn't have a pulse or respiration. She was then hooked up to a defibrillator and given a shock. He said she then regained consciousness and spontaneous circulation and respiration.
       Last said close to 95 percent of all people who suffer a sudden cardiac arrest die before reaching the hospital and added that Modzelewski is a "6-percenter."
       Without CPR, he said brain death occurs in four to six minutes. The paramedics arrived within four minutes of the call to help Modzelewski.
       "CPR is not just for heart attacks," Last said, adding that it can be used for victims of electric shock, drowning, allergic reactions, strokes and drug overdoses.
       During the board meeting the four first responders<Captain Anthony Augugliaro, James Sutter, Sgt. Kevin Kennedy and Paul Maiorana<were recognized as well as the three who performed CPR prior to their arrival.
       "On July 14 three people chose to get involved," Last said, "Two out of the three didn't even know the patient. True heroes do not think about being a hero, they just do what's instinctive to them."
       Because of the fast thinking of those who performed CPR, Modzelewski is still here today, said Last.
       "CPR classes are one of the most important things we can do in our township for survival of our residents," said Last, adding that the fire department offers CPR training.
       Anyone interested in taking a CPR class is encouraged to call the Washington Township Fire Department at (586) 781-6161.