Brick Man Thanks Rescuers Who Saved His Life

BRICK, NJ — One moment, Carl Schwab was on the telephone, talking with his neighbor, Roberta Cartwright. The next moment, his wife, Susan, found him slumped in the chair, the phone on the floor.

On the other end of the line, Roberta Cartwright, who had been offering to bring some of the pulled pork she'd made to the Schwabs, heard the phone hit the floor. And then she heard Susan yelling for help.

It was Jan. 2, shortly after 7:30 p.m. Carl Schwab could have died that night. He didn't, thanks to the quick actions of his neighbors and Brick Township police and EMTs. And on March 15, he and Susan got to thank all of them personally for saving him.

The Schwabs and the Cartwrights, along with Brick Patrolmen Anthony Chadwick and Mark Storch, and Brick Township Police EMTs Anthony Botts and Paul Witham gathered at the Schwabs' home to celebrate Carl's recovery, Brick Sgt. James Kelly said.

He had a chance to recover because of the quick actions of those around him. When Roberta heard Susan calling for help through the open phone line, she hollered to her husband, Peter, who jumped in the car and drove down the block to the Schwabs' home.

Susan, who had found Carl unconcious and slumped in his chair, called 911.

Peter Cartwright arrived and found Carl not breathing and with no pulse, so he maneuvered him out of the chair and onto the floor and began CPR.

Within four minutes of being dispatched, Chadwick arrived and ran in with his first aid bag, which included an Automated External Defibrillator (AED). Storch arrived right behind Chadwick and the EMTs — Botts, Witham and Kyle Matthews — were right on his heels.

The officers and EMTs applied lifesaving measures to Carl Schwab for upwards of 20 minutes, Kelly said, ultimately reviving Schwab's pulse and getting him stable enough to be transported to Ocean Medical Center in Brick.

Carl Schwab was treated for more than a month, including having a pacemaker-defibrillator implanted and he had weeks of rehabilitation, but was finally able to return home in mid-February, Kelly said.

"These guys are amazing," Susan Schwab said during the March 15 gathering. "I want to thank them all for saving my husband’s life. You all are wonderful, and my neighbors are wonderful."

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