Downingtown Off-Duty Firefighter Saves Life At A Local Gym

DOWNINGTOWN, PA – A workout turned into first responder work Friday for an off-duty firefighter at Planet Fitness.

East Brandywine Deputy Fire Chief Joseph Edwards was 15 minutes into a workout when a man on the treadmill in front of him collapsed.

"He hit his head pretty hard and started to bleed from the back of his head and was unresponsive," says Edwards who told staff to call 9-1-1 and retrieve their automated external defibrillator, or AED.

"It analyzed the patient's heart rhythm and it told us to shock, everybody was able to stay clear of the patient, we delivered the shock and then started CPR again and right after the 2 minute round of CPR the pulse returned," says Edwards.

The 61-year-old victim from West Bradford went to Brandwine Hospital for further care and called Edwards on Saturday morning to thank him.
He says even though he was in the right place at the right time, having an AED readily available was the real life saver.

"The sooner you have AED applied and you shock the patient, the chances of survival increase dramatically," says Edwards.