The personnel of

the Fayette County Department of Fire and

Emergency Services are trained to be ready at all

times for any situation. But occasionally a dire

situation develops right in the station, without

a 911 call, as a would-be victim can even appear

at the front door.

Katherine Mangum,

77, was eating a hot dog at her home in south

Fayette County Oct. 15 when she began having

trouble breathing. Her husband put her in their

car and drove about two miles to Fire Station 5

on Ga. Highway 85, where Bobby Haydon and Jason

Davis happened to be on duty.

As the car pulled

up to the station with the horn blaring, the two

paramedics went outside to see what was the

problem. Mrs. Mangum was able to walk in on her

own, but both men knew something was wrong.

At the instruction

of the firefighters, she tried to cough up the

obstruction, but that actually lodged it more

securely in her airway until it was completely

blocked. When one of the men attempted the

Heimlich maneuver and it failed, she became

unconscious.

Haydon and Davis

laid her out on the floor and, working as a team,

kept her head properly positioned while

performing abdominal thrusts to dislodge the

food. That worked, and Mrs. Mangum began

breathing again and finally woke up.

She was taken to

Fayette Community Hospital as a precaution, but

the hospital checked her out and released her

that same day. She returned to the station the

next week to thank the men who saved her life.

A few walk-ins have

appeared at other times at Fire Station 5, for

minor injuries or heart trouble, but never

anything like this, the men said.

Both paramedics

pointed out that they used no advanced procedures

during this incident, but anyone with basic

cardiopulmonary resuscitation training could have

done the same thing. This is a prime example of

the importance of all citizens learning CPR, they

said.

When someone begins

choking and no one knows CPR or it doesn't work,

the next step is to call 911, the men added.

Although this situation worked out for the best,

the Mangums could have driven up to an empty fire

station, as all other personnel were on a call

and Haydon and Davis had returned shortly before.

It is recommended

that those who wish to be trained in CPR take a

class every two years. For information about the

availability of such training in this area, call

the FCDFES or the Fayette County Recreation

Department.

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