On the job, firefighters and police expect to be called upon to respond to emergencies.
For two Joint Base Lewis-McChord Yakima Training Center personnel, two incidents put their lifesaving skills to the test when they least expected it.
Assistant Fire Chief Ed Vertrees and Department of the Army Police Officer Brent Denton recently received Army Civilian awards for Humanitarian Service.
For Vertrees, a "Black Friday" shopping trip with his 14-year-old daughter turned into a life and death situation.
"I noticed a commotion - some police officers were gathering around a person who had fallen out in line," Vertrees said. "Given my experience, I figured I would go and give them a hand."
Upon reaching the downed woman, it was clear the situation was dire, he said.
"I recognized quickly that she wasn't getting air when she was trying to breath," Vertrees said.
Vertrees quickly organized rescuers - including police and a shopper who happened to be a nurse - and led the cardiopulmonary resuscitation effort, he said.
"I just kind of reverted back to my training," Vertrees said. "It was kind of difficult, though, because I didn't have any equipment with me."
Some store employees brought over a makeshift first aid kit, he said.
"We were able to gather some equipment out of it, like gloves," Vertrees said.
Vertrees continued CPR until an ambulance arrived. His daughter witnessed the rescue.
"It upset her quite a bit," Vertrees said. "At home a few hours later, I decided to call and see if the woman had pulled through."
Thanks to his lifesaving efforts, the woman recovered.
Vertrees and his daughter visited her at the hospital and left a "get well" card, he said.
"After the woman recovered, she learned CPR," Vertrees
said. "She went back to her church and helped teach others CPR, too."
In an odd turn of events, one of the parishioners who learned CPR went on to save another life, he said.
As for Vertrees' daughter, watching her father in action served as inspiration to her, he said.
"It impacted her in positive ways," Vertrees said. "She's
since talked about maybe enter-
ing the (emergency rescue) field."
Denton
While on a hunting trip near Rimrock, outside of Yakima, Denton and his three sons came upon more than game on the trail.
"We'd heard a shot and then shortly after, we heard a muffled shot," Denton said. "Then we heard screaming from a hunter that he'd shot himself."
Denton immediately headed in the direction of the shouts, he said.
"Me and my 10-year-old headed down to the scene expecting to see just a slight gunshot wound," Denton said.
What they saw when they got to the hunter took their breath away, he said.
"The gentleman almost totally amputated his leg just below the knee," Denton said. "There was heavy arterial bleeding."
There was no time to lose. They were at least an hour from the nearest hospital.
"So, we got started on first level responder training - you know, lifesaving stuff," Denton said.
Denton got on a four-way telephone conversation with different agencies and began to coordinate rescue, he said.
"Then we had to get him packed out and to the life flight," Denton said.
Once the man was airlifted to Yakima Regional Hospital, doctors stabilized him and amputated his leg.
"Everything had to go perfectly for him to survive," Denton said. "He was in surgery within 19 minutes of boarding the helicopter."
Denton credits his children with aiding in a smooth rescue.
The older boys cleared a path for responding medical aid and guided them to the victim.
"It was truly a group effort," Denton said. "It was a great thing to be a part of."
Rick Wood: rick.wood@nwguardian.com
Social Sharing