A truck driver likely owes his life to two Indianola paramedics who stopped to help when they came across his crashed rig on their way back to the fire station on Sunday.
Paramedics Investigate Crashed Truck, Find Driver Unresponsive
Paramedic Jason Kling and EMT Kayla Schark were traveling on Highway 5 near the Des Moines airport when they found a truck crashed in the median. Kling and Schark stopped to investigate.
They found 57 year old truck driver Jeff Ronek unresponsive and not breathing. He was suffering from cardiac arrest. The medics along with two Good Samaritans who stopped to help pulled Ronek from the cab and began chest compressions and rescue breathing.
Using a defibrillator, the medics shocked Ronek six times and were able to re-establish a normal cardiac pattern. He regained consciousness and was able to speak to his rescuers.
Truck Driver’s First Concern Was The Safety Of Others
Though he was extremely disoriented, the first question that Ronek asked when he woke up was “Did I hurt anybody?” He hadn’t — mostly because he had somehow managed to guide his truck into the median and put it into park before he lost consciousness. The medics even think he managed to turn the truck off because they could not remember hearing the sound of the engine running.
Said Ronek: “I can’t thank these guys enough for what they did. I’m alive because they stopped and then they didn’t stop trying until they could get my heart going again.”
http://kcci.tv/6185BjRrL
Posted by Indianola Fire Department on Tuesday, 23 February 2016
Sources:
KCCI
Radio Iowa
The Des Moines Register