Nebraska Woman Meets Dispatcher Who Helped Save Her Life
OMAHA, Neb. --
Omaha firefighters honored a man on Wednesday for his efforts in helping save his wife's life.
The Fire Department's Citizen's Bystander CPR Award went to Mark Curly.
On July 12, Curly woke up to the sound of his wife, Ginny Curly, struggling to breathe.
"I thought she was snoring, but she was gasping for breath. She was making strange sounds, her eyes were open but I couldn't wake her up," he said.
The 911 call Curly made that morning just after 6 a.m. recorded the frantic moments.
"Hi, I need an ambulance right away," Curly told the operator. "My wife is not breathing," he's heard saying.
The woman on the other end of the line was Karen Green, an eight-year 911 dispatcher.
"I'm getting help on the way," Green said. "I just need to know whether or not we need to start CPR."
Curly responded, "Well, she started breathing again, but she's not waking up. I can't revive her."
Green then guided him through chest compressions, keeping at least some oxygen circulating through her blood until medics arrived.
Curly said he couldn't have done it alone. Green said it's unusual to meet someone she helps. She met Curly and his wife on Wednesday.
"I'm close in age to her and I also have a family, and it's just nice to see a good outcome," Green said.
The Curly family said it will learn CPR. Ginny Curly said things might not have worked out so well.
"What if he didn't wake up when I was having a hard time breathing? What if I had gone running and hadn't been at home? There are so many different things that could have happened. I'm just overwhelmed by the fact I'm still alive today," she said.
The fire department also presented an automated external defibrillator, or AED, to Girls Inc, which won the device during Police and Fire Appreciation Day in June.
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