UPDATE WITH PHOTO, VIDEO :GASTON FIRE'S HAGG LAKE RESCUE BOAT HELPS SAVE LIFE DURING DRILL
Posted: April 21st, 2012 5:21 PM
Photo/sound file: http://www.flashalertnewswire.net/images/news/2012-04/3743/53609/boat11.jpg (File photo of Gaston Fire Boat 11 at Boat Ramp C, site of Saturday's rescue. )
Photo/sound file: http://www.flashalertnewswire.net/images/news/2012-04/3743/53609/20120308boat_0018.mod (footage of Gaston Fire Boat 11 on Hagg Lake.)
Photo/sound file: http://www.flashalertnewswire.net/images/news/2012-04/3743/53609/20120308boat_0012.mod (footage of Gaston Fire Boat 11 on Hagg Lake.)
The Gaston Fire District's new rescue boat responded to its first lifesaving call Saturday at Hagg Lake before officially being put into service.
Eight emergency medical technicians were practicing with Gaston Fire's Boat 11 on Hagg Lake near Boat Ramp C at 3 p.m. Saturday when a call came in of a park patron suffering chest pains near the ramp.
Within minutes the boat and its crew of EMTs arrived on shore to find the patient in full cardiac arrest. By the time LifeFlight arrived to transport the patient, the patient had been revived enough to communicate with the EMTs. He was transported by helicopter to Providence St. Vincent Medical Center for emergency care.
The incident is another reminder of the value of defibrillators. Most public buildings have automated versions of the device that include audio instructions for use by anyone.
Boat 11 was purchased this winter with a $45,000 grant from the Dal Baker Trust, intended to respond to the heavy volume of calls at Hagg Lake every summer. Gaston's EMTs are undergoing intensive training with the boat before the start of the summer season, when the population of the Gaston district more than doubles on sunny weekends.
Saturday was intended to be only a drill, but instead the boat proved its value early. Boat 11 will be officially dedicated in a ceremony at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 5, at Boat Ramp C, the site of Saturday's real-life rescue.
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