Florida Highway Trooper Credits Training With Saving Man's Life Who Passed Out, Crashed SUV On I-95
MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A Florida Highway Trooper credits his training with saving the life of a man who had lost consciousness and crashed his vehicle on I-95 last September.
On September 1st of this year, FHP Trooper Maykoll Souza raced to the scene where an SUV crashed into a guardrail on the highway near Sunrise Blvd.
When he got to the scene, he found a man passed out behind the wheel of his vehicle.
"When I got up to the vehicle, I observed that the driver was kind of slumped back with his head tilted back," said Souza. "His skin was very pale, his eyes were rolled back. When I checked his pulse it was barely there. His breathing was very shallow."
Trooper Souza quickly realized this appeared to be a drug overdose.
"I'm a drug recognition expert. Once I approached him based on what I observed, the pale skin and the eyes rolled back, I immediately noticed those were indicators of an opioid overdose."
Souza first administered Narcan, when that didn't work, he and another trooper dragged the man from the driver's seat and began roadside CPR. All this, while traffic whizzed by just feet away.
Narcan can treat a narcotic overdose in an emergency situation.
"With everything going on right then and there, traffic was really the least of my concerns. My concern was to make sure that that individual was getting the care that he needed."
After a couple of minutes, video shows the man jolt up, as he comes back to life.
He lost consciousness a few more times, but once again, CPR brought him back.
The trooper said he took some time to reassure the man that he was in good hands.
By the time paramedics got him onto the gurney, he was sitting up and appeared conscious.
Trooper Souza said on that night his training paid off in saving a man's life.
"I'm just glad that I was able to be there at the right time, the right place, and be able to do something different and make a difference," said Souza.
FHP says that victim is doing well. However, there is still a criminal DUI investigation pending in this case.