Gym staff jumps into action to save man having heart attack at Planet Fitness
MAHOPAC, New York (WABC) -- Employees and gym-goers jumped into action to help save a man's life after he collapsed during a workout.
It wasn't the workout Megan Kreinen was expecting Tuesday morning when a fellow member at the Planet Fitness in Mahopac suffered a heart attack.
"He literally landed at my feet," she said. "When I sat up, he was on the floor convulsing so I jumped up, went to his side, and started administering first aid."
Kreinen is an Army veteran trained in CPR, as are staffers at the gym who also jumped into action.
First responders continued the furious fight to save the 65-year-old through a combination of CPR and shocks from a defibrillator.
"From there we just started working on the patient, making sure that we were going to transport him really quickly to the hospital and then they got pulses back in the ambulance," said EMT Kerim Zorluoglu.
The victim needed to be revived two additional times on the ambulance ride to the hospital where he is still recovering.
"It was a three-minute response time, which is really outstanding," said Chief Gabe Rivera with the Mahopac Volunteer Fire Dept. "It makes a big impact."
His prognosis is good, but wouldn't have been possible if not for an amazing team effort.
"We have to also give credit to the people here, the staff here who started early CPR, I think that was really what led to a great outcome," said Carmel Police Dept. Sgt. Laura Whitten.
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