CPR saves lives, but did it tonight?

Right before our normal page out time tonight for drill, our tones went off. I didn't think too much of it, thinking the drill tone out was just a bit early. Actually, it was a cardiac arrest call in the pouring rain. Several Firefighters from our department responded. We worked great as a team, everyone knowing what to do and when.

Myself and another Firefighter/EMT rode to the hospital in the ambulance to help out. This is standard practice on a call that needs additional help. I ended up doing CPR in the ambulance running lights and sirens all the way to the hospital. It felt like a hour or more, but was probably only 10 or 15 minutes. Still feels like forever when you're trying to keep your balance and do decent chest compressions at the same time. The Emergency Room crew was still working on the patient when we left so I don't know the outcome. Sometimes the only way we know (as morbid as this sounds) is to check the obituaries. It helps give me closure on calls - something we quite often don't get.

Here's an instructional video on CPR from youtube. Everyone should know how to do CPR and apply and AED. One note, for the general layperson, the AHA doesn't promote feeling for pulses anymore under the C for circulation. Instead, you're to look for signs of responsiveness, or the like.



Hey, learn it! It's a death defying act!!

I-35 Semi Crash, 12/4/07

Hey! Just another day in paradise here in Central Texas! We had a doozy of a wreck on the interstate yesterday about 3:30 pm or so. An 18 wheeler going north ran into the back of another semi. Made one heck of a mess and closed I-35 for several hours.

Much of the traffic was diverted off the north bound and southbound exits before the wreck, cramming the secondary roads with traffic just in time for rush hour. How Fun! Neither driver was seriously hurt according to the news. I missed all the excitement because I didn't get out of work until after 4:30. Instead, I made sure all the kids got picked up from Basketball practice while the other members were working at the scene! We're a full service volunteer fire department, doncha know!

Here's what the news people had to say:

"A truck driver had to be extracted from the cab of his truck following an accident that backed traffic up for more than five miles Tuesday afternoon.
The accident occurred in Northbound traffic of I-35 about 3:30 p.m., as one 18 Wheeler struck the rear of another, crushing the truck's cab and spilling the load on the roadway.
One of the trucks spilled paint across the highway, clean up is expected to take several hours.
Traffic was backed up beyond Hewitt. DPS along with Hewitt and Robinson Police Departments were diverting Northbound I-35 traffic onto the service roads."

I joked with our chief "Hey, if they bring a crane in to pick up the trucks, make sure none of our fire department vehicles are anywhere where near it!!" If you read my very first post right here, you'll understand the department joke!