Bloomington-Normal emergency personnel are reminding people of the importance of knowing CPR in case of emergency.
In January, Alyssa Enevold, a grad student studying biology from Mankato, Minnesota, was walking with friends near the Illinois State University campus when she suddenly collapsed into the snow. Seeing commotion as he and a friend walked outside, fellow ISU student Anthony Michalski of Plainfield rushed to administer CPR until the Normal Fire Department could take over.
Michalski had gone through CPR training previously to become a lifeguard, and then many times more since joining the National Guard in 2019.
This is not to say it was easy. This was still the first time he had to do the procedure in a real-life scenario.
“It was more of panic that no one had called 911 yet that, like we were kind of alone in the situation,” Michalski said at a news conference. “So I quickly started performing CPR while dialing 911 at the same time, and I had the operator, like, just on speaker next to me while we were in the snow.”
Michalski said anyone else would have done the same thing.
“Maybe not as quickly,” he said. “But no one sees someone lying on the floor and doesn’t do everything they can to help them.”
Twenty hours later, Enevold was stabilized at Carle BroMenn Medical Center. Matt Swaney, public information officer for the Normal Fire Department, said it was because of Michalski's efforts that paramedics were able to give her fluids, medicine and a diagnosis.
“Learning CPR, learning that skill, can come in handy when you least expect it,” said Swaney.
Enevold herself does not have any recollection from when she collapsed, nor does she remember anything from the first few days after. Kris Newcomb, director of McLean County EMS, said she missed quite a lot.
The 911 dispatcher talked Michalski through administering CPR and got first responders to the scene quickly. She was defibrillated by Normal Police. She was given a LUCAS device, an automated machine that can do CPR without loss of energy, to give vital organs as much vital blood and oxygen as they can outside of a regular heartbeat. And with one shock to the heart, they arrived at the hospital in control of Enevold’s breathing, 22 minutes after responders were dispatched to the scene.
“After over 30 years of medical practice, I can tell you that moments like these are not common, and we celebrate them like this, because it's such a feel-good outcome,” said Dr. John Wieland, chief medical officer at Carle BroMenn. “So we are, as a health care facility and as a community, we are so very happy for everyone in this that was related to this event in any way, and so proud to call this place home.”
The lesson to be learned, experts at the news conference stressed, was that learning how to perform CPR can save a life someday.
"If we aren't doing early chest compressions and getting the blood flow to the brain, there's brain death and eventually human death," said NFD's Swaney. "So learning CPR is such a key, vital, important part for anybody."
WGLT's Colleen Holden contributed to this report.
