Man Found Face Down on Street Saved By Cops, AED

A 55-year-old Laurel man who collapsed in the middle of a street is alive and recovering thanks to the quick actions of four Laurel Police officers and some life-saving equipment in their patrol cars.

It’s the first time officers have successfully used an automated electronic defibrillator -- or AED -- to save a life since all city-owned vehicles, including 68 patrol cars, were equipped with the devices last year, according to city officials.

AED’s read heart rhythms and deliver an electric shock in cases of cardiac arrest.

In this case, Laurel Police were called to the 500 block of Eighth Street on Nov. 11, where a man as lying face down in the middle of the road. He was not breathing and had no signs of life.

The officers began CPR, and when that didn’t work, used the AED to shock the victim twice. His heart started again, and he was taken to Laurel Regional Hospital in stable condition.

“The benefit of having these AEDs in the cars is tremendous, especially when time is short,” Police Chief Richard McLaughlin says. “We can see now from this instance that they are truly life-savers.”

Laurel Mayor Craig A. Moe accepted a donation of 100 AEDs from Rescue One Training for Life, Inc. last year.

This is the second time Laurel Police have used an AED in an emergency situation. The first time, it was too late to save the victim when officers arrived.

Besides equipping all city-owned vehicles with AEDs, Mayor Moe wants them in all city facilities, too. He’s hoping this life-saving incident on Veterans Day will inspire residents to get CPR training and learn how to use an AED.

“With winter sports, snow shoveling, and family gathering on the horizon, it’s nice to know if you had only seconds to save a life, you’d know what to do,” Moe says.