A man who is lucky to be alive had a chance to reunite with those who raced to his rescue to say thanks after he collapsed at work earlier this year.
Sixty-one-year-old Ivan Gallardo greeted members of the Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Station #8 on Monday afternoon.
7News cameras captured the group shaking hands, hugging, and conversing about his recovery.
Gallardo suffered cardiac arrest in September at his office. His colleagues found him slumped over and quickly began CPR before first responders were able to arrive.
The victim said those first seconds of action from his coworkers helped save his life.
“I think that fast response, them seeing me unconscious, and they reacted quickly,” he said.
Station 8 raced into the office, placed him in an ambulance, and headed to a nearby hospital.
“As we were rounding the corner, it got upgraded to CPR in progress,” said FLFR firefighter GW Depauw.
Firefighters said they had to shock Gallardo twice to get him breathing as they made their way to the hospital. Depauw said it’s a miracle that patients who suffer through these kinds of incidents get a second chance at life.
“I’ve been 23 years with Fort Lauderdale. I’ve had very few of these where we run on cardiac arrest or a code, and we get to shake hands days later and meet the person,” said Depauw.
“Had everything not aligned perfectly, he wouldn’t be here with us today. Because of all of those things coming together, in a timely fashion, get another Christmas and hopefully many more years to come,” said FLFR Chief Stephen Gollan.
Ivan said he’s thankful for the quick work of his colleagues and first responders who saved his life and allowed him to celebrate the holidays and the rest of his life.
“My coworkers say, you know, I had a rebirth. I have to celebrate my birthday twice from now on,” he said.
Gollan said this story is a good reminder to the public to take a CPR course.
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