Man Who Was Clinically Dead Reunites With Firefighters Who Saved Him
IRVINE (CBSLA.com) — A new father came face to face with the first responders who revived him after his heart stopped last Thursday.
The three veteran firefighters with the Orange County Fire Authority and a rookie reunited Wednesday with Patrick Salem, who was clinically dead when they rushed to his Irvine home last week.
"They're heroes, really. They saved this guy's life. I really didn't think he was going to make it, to be honest with you," said Tyler Renard, an emergency room physician.
Using every tool in their arsenal from CPR to a defibrillator and a breathing tube, the men brought Salem, who has had a heart transplant, back to life.
"It sounds like a cliché, but I try to do this every day: you live life to the fullest every day," Salem said.
The 40-year-old Salem didn't sustain a heart attack but what's being described as devastating arrhythmia that's now being corrected with medication.
He was recuperating from back surgery at the time.
"Life is precious and hold tight to your loved ones and tell them you love them every day," said Tania Salem, Patrick's wife.
