First responders recount assisting student athlete who collapsed during track meet in Huntley, Illinois
A scary situation at a high school track meet in the northwest suburbs, when a student collapsed on the track on Monday night.
School officials say the response from athletic trainers and paramedics who were there helped save the young man's life.
Two off-duty first responders, who were actually at the multi-school track meet because their sons were competing against each other, said it was surreal to be there as parents one minute, the next, helping save the life of a 16-year-old boy.
"It's not what you're expecting to see when you're there for a fun event, watching kids, you know, succeed in their events, and then all of a sudden, just switch gears to, okay, we've got to do some work," said Andy Milewski, Palatine Fire Department firefighter and paramedic.
"But it's a great example for the staff being trained in CPR, having the AED readily available with people there. That's the testimony here, the training that everyone there had, everyone, including ourselves, that was there willing to respond and help," said Lieutenant Scott Hayden.
The two firefighter-paramedics work for the Palatine Fire Department. They said they were on opposite sides of the track, watching their sons compete in the Fox Valley Conference. It was just after 7 p.m., when Milewski noticed a kid was down on the track.
Moments later, someone ran by with an AED defibrillator—the portable device helps detect an abnormal heartbeat and can deliver an electrical shock during sudden cardiac arrest. When they jumped in to help, the student was unresponsive.
"When you see the AED going in place, you know that it's something a little more serious than just someone that tripped and fell," Milewski said.
The school staff had already started life-saving measures.
"While he was going through his prompts, I felt for a pulse. There was no pulse. So I immediately started CPR, and then as the AED continued to go through its progressions, it advised a shock. Told people to stand back, let it do a shock, get shocked. And I immediately started on CPR again," Milewski said.
"I only was alerted when the student's mom was alerted and chose to run and see if I could help," Hayden said.
The 16-year-old student is from Prairie Ridge High School in Crystal Lake and is on the same team as Hayden's son. At last check, the student was in stable condition at Northwestern Medicine Huntley Hospital.
In a statement, Huntley school officials recognized their athletic trainers, saying, "They did what they were trained to do, but more importantly, they showed what it means to stay calm, focused, and composed in a life-changing moment. Their immediate actions, professionalism, teamwork, and ability to respond under pressure helped save a young man's life…"
"For us, we played a small part," Hayden said.
Seeing others respond in a crisis like this shows why training is so critical.
