Neighbor News
MTA Worker Heroicly Rescues Co-Worker by Performing CPR
MTA Signal Maintainer, David Martinez, saved his coworkers life by performing hands-only CPR.
In October of 2016, MTA Signal Maintainer David Martinez, saved the life of one of his coworkers by performing CPR, which he learned from an American Heart Association instructional video.
David Martinez described his workday as typical before he realized that his coworker, Monique Brathwaite, had fallen face first onto the third rail that powers the trains and was struck by a large surge of electricity.
After seeing his coworker in distress, Martinez began to panic, “Thinking she was probably dead, I inched closer to her, all the while thinking about her small children. And then to my disbelief, I saw the slightest movement!”
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After realizing that his coworker was alive, Martinez knew that he needed to help. He suddenly remembered a 90 second video he watched on one of his morning commutes. The video by the American Heart Association explains the steps of hands-only CPR and explains that anyone can perform it.
“Fear and panic were no longer consuming my mind, but instead everything that I read and watched on Hands-Only CPR just a few months prior.”
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He removed his coworker from the tracks and immediately started performing chest compressions to the beat of Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees without any other prior training aside from the short video. After only a minute passed, Martinez noticed Brathwaite’s eyes open and continued performing hands-only CPR until more trained help arrived.
According to the American Heart Association, many people do not perform CPR in an emergency because they are afraid of causing further injury or believe that it requires training. However, performing CPR on the scene improves the victim’s chances of living by 70%. Just by watching a short video, Martinez was able to save the life of one of his coworkers.
Martinez was recognized for his heroic actions by being awarded the Hometown Hero in Transit award by New York Daily News. However, the real reward to him, was being able to save a life.
“The true honor… knowing that my actions made the difference in my friend living to see another day.”
