Father who saved daughter after lightning strike honored by paramedics

Father who saved daughter after lightning strike honored by paramedics
A father credited with saving the life of his daughter after being struck by lightning was honored by the paramedics who responded to the call.

Steven Jorgensen and the Arizona Fire and Medical Authority can smile about it today, but over the weekend they reacted to one of the most serious and rare calls they’ve recently responded to - a one-in-a-million chance rare.

“Did I see what I really did see?” said Steven.

Steven’s daughter, 12-year-old Ella, was playing with a friend in the rain on Saturday afternoon when she was struck by lightning.

Video shared by Ella’s grandfather shows a small divot in the concrete where the lightning hit.

Steven said Ella was barefoot, wearing a metal necklace.
He feels that necklace that was her late great-grandmother’s could have attracted the lighting.

“That necklace broke apart, her friend that was right next to her was wearing shoes at the time, and I think that's why she wasn’t touched at all,” he said on Thursday.

Steven jumped into action with chest compressions.

Arizona Fire and Medical recommends pressing two inches into the chest with 100 to 120 compressions a minute if someone is in cardiac arrest. EMS Director Nick Ellis said the survival rate for a patient in cardiac arrest out of the hospital is 12 percent nationally. That survival rate can triple with CPR, even if it’s done by a civilian.

Steven said Ella was in and out of consciousness after she was struck.

With paramedics on the way, he kept the CPR compression cadence when he remembered a scene from the show, "The Office."

“I used humor, I think humor is the best flak jacket over anything, so I had The Office scene with CPR training going through my head. From the scene is The Bee Gees' song, Staying Alive. You know what, I started singing Staying Alive,” said Steven.

It worked.


Even paramedics say the 70s disco classic is part of some CPR training.

“If you need help gauging it, you can think Staying Alive by The Bee Gees,” said Ellis.

Steven said other than burns on her arms and legs, Ella is going to be OK and will go back to school soon.

“They got the tubes out of her, she just looked up at her mom and said ‘I got a cool story to tell for now,’” said Steven.

The Arizona Fire and Medical Authority honored Steven today for his quick action that helped save Ella’s life.

It’s not the first time he’s used CPR as the Marine Veteran was once deployed in the Middle East.

His advice to other parents is: never stop learning new things — you never know when it’ll come in handy.

“Be able to heal yourself and others, and ultimately love yourself and others,” he said.