Man Who Collapsed On Basketball Court Gives Thanks For His Life
YONKERS (CBSNewYork) -- A family in Yonkers was giving thanks Tuesday for what they are calling an Easter Miracle.
As CBS 2's Dick Brennan reported, their son collapsed on a basketball court on Easter Sunday, and survived, thanks to fast-working emergency responders.
Jim Murphy Jr. was all smiles at Westchester Medical Center, when he came face to face with the people who brought him back from the brink of death.
"I feel amazing, you know?" Murphy said. "I can't believe how everything worked out."
Murphy, his father and two brothers were playing basketball on in Yonkers' Coyne Park, when the 21-year-old suddenly collapsed.
"We really didn't think there was a problem. We thought that he sprained his ankle. He went down like he sprained his ankle. And then he didn't get up. We thought he was kidding. And when we turned him over, he was turning purple," said the young man's father, Jim Murphy Sr.
A park attendant called 911.
When police and emergency responders arrived, they were worried that they were going to lose the 21-year-old.
"We got there, established holding him. His color was poor. He was pretty much blue," said Gerald Wilkins of the Yonkers Emergency Services Unit.
It was a race against time. Responders used a defibrillator, shocking Jim Murphy Jr. seven times, and performed CPR. Finally, he started to come back to life.
"I'm happy that he's sitting here in front of us, because he really didn't look too good that day," Wilkins said.
Jim Murphy Jr. is a hockey player, and while he has had asthma before, he had no idea that there was any trouble with his heart, but doctors said they have detected an abnormality. However, it can be treated.
"It's really a miracle, and I really just – if everything didn't work out the way it did, I wouldn't be here," Jim Murphy Jr. said. "So I just have to thank everyone. I don't know how I can, but I'm trying."
Doctors said the young man's heart abnormality led to a rapid heartbeat that triggered the collapse. They said they can treat his illness with medication.
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