Wisc. Man Suffers Heart Attack, is Saved by Co-Worker

July 31--FITCHBURG -- Typically, Paul Scott and Jack Pearson don't work together. The two Fitchburg building inspectors usually work on their own. But if June 30 had been a typical day, Pearson wouldn't be here.

It was a slow day on the job, so the two decided to go together to secure an empty house at 2919 King James Way to keep out intruders.

As the co-workers drove over, they caught up on recent events. They chatted about Pearson's recent trip to Tennessee, about the Beltline construction and briefly about some chest pain Pearson was having. He chalked it up to a long weekend.

It was supposed to be an easy job -- just reinforcing windows and locking doors to keep vandals out.

Just as they were wrapping up, Scott said he came out of an upstairs bedrooms and found Pearson lying on his back at the top of the stairs. When Scott realized that Pearson was unresponsive, he called 911. Pearson, it turned out, was suffering a heart attack.

"When you're in a situation like that you're not thinking; you're just reacting," Scott said. "I've known Jack for a couple years, he's a good friend. I can't imagine what would have happened if I hadn't been there to help."

Scott, who doesn't have any formal CPR training, said a dispatcher talked him through doing chest compressions.

"He told me exactly what to do and was counting out the rhythm for me," Scott said. "Just one, two, three, four ..."

Scott was on the phone with the dispatcher for six minutes before emergency responders arrived.

Pearson said he doesn't recall anything from that day or the day after.

"I woke up two days later really confused," Pearson said. "I don't think that I really came to grips with it then ... I don't know if I really have yet, to be honest."

Now, a month after the incident, the duo can poke fun at each other.

Scott joked that if Fitchburg started offering CPR classes for employees, he'd be the instructor.

"Jack would be the dummy," he added, chuckling.

Following his heart attack, Pearson said he has started eating better and working with a cardiac exercise team at UW Health.

Two weeks back on the job, the duo returned to check on the house Wednesday.

"I signed up for the Heart Walk after this. That was one of the first things I did. It's just ..." Pearson said, trailing off. He turned away from the house where he almost died, and his eyes got misty.

"You all right, buddy?" Scott said, clapping a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah," Pearson said, clearing his throat.

"It's tough," Scott said. "I mean, quite the experience. You never think something like that is going to happen, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah," Pearson said, straightening his shoulders. "But, we'll be OK."

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