Man thankful lifeguards saved him using defibrillator
Posted March 1, 2013 6:55 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A 65-year-old Toronto man is giving thanks for the lifeguards, paramedics and a simple piece of equipment that saved his life.
On Jan. 18, Paul Andaloro went into cardiac arrest while swimming at the Gus Ryder Pool and Health Club.
“My cool down lap, I swim on my back. And on that lap, I was looking at the ceiling and it started to spin,” Andaloro said. “That’s the last thing I remember.”
The three lifeguards on duty noticed he was in distress, pulled him from the water and started CPR. And with the help of an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) — available in every city pool — they got back his pulse.
Andaloro underwent surgery and, on Friday, went back to the pool where he has been swimming for 25 years to thank those who rescued him.
“It gave me butterflies at first,” said one of the lifeguards, Kristy Blair.
“Feels really good to know he has more time with his family and he can live his life.”
It was the first time Blair had used an AED.
“None of this would have happened without the lifeguards doing their job,” paramedic Joe Barta said.
Andaloro, who has a wife and two daughters, couldn’t thank city staff and paramedics enough, and says he’s looking forward to getting back in the pool.
“Can you imagine being able to save someone’s life?” he said. “And that’s what they did. They saved my life.”
Gayle Pollock, commander of the Toronto EMS Safe City Program, said seven lives were saved last year with AEDs.
“This is the third save this year using an AED installed in a public space as part of the City’s program,” she said.
“We are thrilled to hear about Mr. Andaloro’s recovery.”
Without CPR and defibrillation, fewer than five per cent of people who have a cardiac arrest outside of a hospital survive.
