Two ambulances rushed out of the bay of the Newtown Volunteer Ambulance headquarters on the afternoon of Monday, May 12, dispatched to calls for medical help. Then a third call came in for a reported seizure at Edmond Town Hall. A 57-year-old man was playing basketball in the historic building's gym and suddenly went unconscious.

That man was Andrew Stubbs and he was not having a seizure. He was actually in cardiac arrest, which, as Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps (NVAC) Chief Michelle Greenspan pointed out, can sometimes appear as a seizure. Greenspan also noted that out-of-hospital cardiac arrests have a very low survival rate, about 5-10%.

NVAC EMT Karsen Pirone, who had reported to the ambulance headquarters an hour early for her shift on May 12, and Janet Zamary rushed to Edmond Town Hall, responding to the call for help received through Newtown Emergency Communications Center, or dispatch. Upon arrival at 45 Main Street they were met with bystanders who had started CPR.

“Karsen and Janet were first on scene,” Greenspan said, narrating the story during a ceremony at the ambulance corps headquarters that was held to honor the two EMTs on June 11. “Karsen quickly identified it as cardiac arrest and advised the bystanders to continue that high-quality CPR and she initiated the BVM ventilations … and set up the AED and administered that first defibrillatory shock which got your pulse back.” BVM, or bag-valve-mask ventilation, allows for oxygenation and ventilation of patients until a more definitive airway can be established.

Outside the NVAC headquarters before the ceremony Wednesday evening, Stubbs and Pirone shared an emotional embrace, one that left a lot of bystanders in tears. Stubbs then proudly showed off the incision where a new defibrillator sits in his chest.

NVAC Member-At-Large Gavin Arneth said “it’s pretty rare” that EMTs are able to see their patients again, and even more rare to celebrate their life. He added seeing Pirone and Stubbs hug was “pretty amazing.”

After Greenspan described the events of the day, Pirone and Zamary were honored with a plaque recognizing their life-saving efforts. First Selectman Jeff Capeci also presented each woman with a proclamation recognizing their hard work and dedication to the volunteer service.

After the recognition, Stubbs spoke.

“I didn’t know [there was] going to be this many people … I got such great care from this wonderful institution,” he shared. He added that when he found out Pirone was the woman who deployed the AED, he really wanted to meet her.

Stubbs said he thinks everybody needs to be trained on CPR and AED use. He also said the company he works for just bought an AED and is “threatening to put it right next to [his] desk.”

After Stubbs addressed the crowd, his wife Kelly also thanked the crew of volunteers.

“You saved a father of four. He’s 57. He’s in good health, you don’t expect him to have cardiac arrest," she said. "It’s amazing what you did. We celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary the weekend after he got out of the hospital.”

Greenspan closed the ceremony saying, “What we’ve seen tonight is a powerful reminder of why volunteer EMS matters. The responders we honored stepped up, not as part of a job, but as part of a calling. They train, they respond, and they serve because they care about this community.

“Volunteer EMS is becoming rarer across the country, but here in Newtown, it’s still strong because of people like us," Greenspan added. "To our members, I thank you for showing up time and time again. To all of our EMTs, thank you. You make this organization what it is. To everyone here, family and friends, let’s celebrate what’s possible when neighbors care for neighbors.”

Following the ceremony, Stubbs asked The Newtown Bee to remind readers that the two women who were key in saving his life last month — and Newtown’s entire ambulance crew, he noted — are volunteers.

“They don’t get paid for this,” he reiterated.

=====

Reporter Sam Cross can be reached at sam@thebee.com.