Off-duty Bellevue firefighter saves man's life responding to CPR-focused app alert

Off-duty Bellevue firefighter saves man's life responding to CPR-focused app alert
What was meant to be a day off for a Bellevue firefighter turned into a day where she would use her CPR skills to save a man's life.

A Bellevue firefighter, who has asked to remain anonymous, was at a hair appointment when she got a notification from the PulsePoint app she had downloaded on her cell phone.

The alert told her she was around the corner from a man in cardiac arrest near Covington City Hall.

PulsePoint is a free mobile app that was created to "empower communities" by connecting everyday citizens trained in CPR to nearby emergencies in public places where a person requires CPR. A citizen can begin CPR before first responders arrive.

The app is a way to “crowdsource” CPR.

According to the Medic One Foundation, the "lifesaving app" also helps locate AEDs, provides instruction on how to perform CPR, and allows users to follow their local fire and EMS agency to receive notifications of significant events, such as wildland fires and flooding.

Dave Tait, chief of EMS operations for Bellevue Fire Department (BFD), said the off-duty firefighter who helped a man in Covington also responded to a cardiac arrest call through the app two years ago and helped save a woman's life. At that time, she was not yet a trained firefighter, but knew CPR and jumped into action when getting the PulsePoint alert.

Tait discusses how his fellow firefighter responded to the app in the video player above.

"Starting CPR before EMS arrives is crucial," Tait said. "Each minute without CPR reduces the chance of survival by 10 percent."

According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of a hospital each year in the United States. Effective citizen CPR and a shock from an Automated External Defibrillator (AED), provided immediately, can double or triple the chance of survival.

Tait said the BFD is regularly hosting CPR classes for people to learn adult, child and infant CPR. He said other fire and EMS agencies also offer classes.