Wysocko Wielkie. He fainted while delivering his farewell speech. He was saved by firefighters

The incident took place at the cemetery in Wysocko Wielkie during the funeral of Mieczysław Knychała, president of the Local Olympian Club in this town and a volunteer firefighter who served in the Wysocko Wielkie Volunteer Fire Department for 45 years.

– One of the participants who was giving the farewell speech suddenly fainted. There was a sudden cardiac arrest – reports Wojciech Krawczyk, president of the local Volunteer Fire Department.

Firefighters immediately rushed to help – Marika Toś and Mateusz Kołeczko from the Wysocko Wielkie Volunteer Fire Department and Łukasz Kowalewicz from the Sadowie Volunteer Fire Department. At that time, Krawczyk went to the Volunteer Fire Department’s car, from which he brought a defibrillator.

– We immediately used this device and after defibrillating the injured person, his vital functions began to return and he began to regain consciousness. By this time, an ambulance had already arrived and took over the man with regained consciousness, says Krawczyk.

The efficient rescue operation most likely saved the man’s life.

“The situation encountered by rescuers today confirms the validity of training volunteer firefighters and equipping units with AED defibrillators,” wrote Piotr Kuroszczyk, mayor of the Ostrów Wielkopolski commune, in thanks to the participants of the action.

As it turned out, the equipment effectively used to save human lives was delivered to the Volunteer Fire Department in Wysocki Wielki only a month ago.

There are currently 16 defibrillators in the Ostrów Wielkopolski commune, some in the vehicles of Volunteer Fire Department units, and the rest in public buildings, in publicly accessible places, such as the commune office, the Commune Cultural Center, or the village hall in Lamki.

The Ostrów Wielkopolski commune also reminds that it is piloting the “First Rescuer” program, which is intended to shorten the time from calling for medical assistance to providing assistance before the arrival of the ambulance. Activities promoting this program include, among others: competitions in the quality of chest compressions.

Last Sunday, they took place at the Volunteer Fire Department Wtórek, as part of CPR Day. Łukasz Kowalewicz and Mateusz Kołeczko took part in them. During the competition, each participant had to compress the chest twice for 2 minutes. Compression quality was measured using QCPR technology. The competition was won by Kołeczko, who was able to test his skills in practice just a few days later.

“This is a perfect example that first aid training can have a direct impact on life. These types of training events are necessary and important. We would like to thank everyone for their great attitude,” we read on the First Rescuer’s profile.

As they emphasize, firefighters themselves do not feel like heroes. “We only did what had to be done in this situation. (…) Words of thanks go to those thanks to whom life-saving equipment is delivered to our unit. These are all our residents and supporters who support us financially when distributing calendars , the Ostrów Wielkopolski Commune and the Farmers’ Social Insurance Contribution Fund. It was from these funds that the defibrillator that was used today was purchased. These are real heroes,” wrote the participants of the campaign.