Long Lake First Responders Honored For Saving A Life

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Police, medics, and firefighters were honored during the Long Lake City Council meeting for saving a life.

On March 21, the call came in for a woman suffering from shortness of breathe. She went into cardiac arrest and her heart stopped. When ambulance services arrived, two officers were performing CPR on the woman.

Emergency personnel found out she had COPD -- a lung disease that causes obstructed airflow from the lungs. She was treated for that and the cardiac arrest, which got her heart going again.

"It means a lot," Erick Shaft of North Memorial Ambulance Services said. "We kind of have a thankless job a lot of the time. We go in and do our stuff, and then we move on. So to be recognized for doing what we do and being able to represent all the people that do this job is an honor."

Family also there last night, emotional at times, thanking officers for saving the woman's life. In all, 16 emergency personnel were recognized for their life saving efforts that night.