This Man Was About to Die But 5 High School Students Saved Him With CPR & AED

When we witness a person dropping unconscious in front of us, usually, our first instinct is to panic because we are not taught how to react to these situations. However, these five well-trained teens knew exactly what to do when they found an unconscious footballer on the field.

The Star reported that five teenagers managed to bring Long Soo Keat, a real estate agent who fainted during a football match, back to life with an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).

The report revealed that 14-year-old Ansley Tan Zhong was the first to notice the fainted Long and immediately called out to his fellow teammates from St John Ambulance Malaysia (SJAM) for help.

Source: the star

Their senior, SJAM L/Cpl Gabriel Soon Chai Long, quickly realised that the 49-year-old man was on the brink of death. 

“His pulse was irregular and then stopped. He was gasping heavily. We call that agonal breathing, the sign of a heart attack,” shared the 16-year-old.

So, they used the public AED to bring the poor man back to life in Chung Ling High School, Ayer Itam, Penang. Such brave and intelligent teens! 

After the incident, The Star met Soon, Tan, SJAM Pvt Liong Jun Yong, and 14-year-old cadets, S. Shaman and Tang Yi, to learn more about their heroic tale on 15 September 2018.

Source: leader healthcare

Talking to The Star’s reporter, Tan recalled that he requested a bystander to break the glass of the AED Kiosk on the school grounds, so the person can unlock the AED and bring it to them.

Soon then whipped out the AED’s sensor pads and attached them to Long’s chest; it then analysed Long’s condition. After analysing, the voice-prompt decreed that a cardiac pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) must be conducted soon.

FYI, AED uses voice commands to give accurate instructions for the rescuers on how they could save the victim, as said by Penang Heart Safe Programme chairman Datuk Dr Luah Lean Wah. Hmm… they probably should have this AED all over Malaysia. 

Source: health science counselling

Soon proceeded to perform CPR on Long as demanded by the AED even though it was his first attempt. Nonetheless, he has had many CPR practices in the past. He was quoted as saying,

“The latest CPR research recommends 30 chest compressions and then two rescue breaths per cycle.”

“The AED’s voice-prompt kept telling me to ‘push harder’. The victim was bigger than me and I used all my strength.”

Soon further revealed that from time to time, the AED instructed him not to touch Long so it can send 150 to 200 volts of electric shock to Long’s body.

Source: st john ambulance malaysia

Soon continued,

“The device gave him three shocks and when the ambulance came, he was given another shock with the ambulance’s defibrillator. Only after that did his heart beat again.”

Soon also revealed that, in the midst of saving Long’s life, the AED analysis showed that his CPR was weakening. This is because he forgot that he was supposed to perform the CPR in turns.

“We must take turns doing CPR because it is tiring. But I was so focused on saving his life that I didn’t remember. I will never forget now,” Soon said.

Long was then admitted in the hospital for nearly two weeks before being discharged on 14 September 2018 to rest at home. Well, thank goodness Long is recovering! 

Long is reportedly very grateful for the boys’ heroic act as he shared,

“The five boys are heroes. I think other people would have panicked but the boys were well-trained.”

Besides that, Long also urged everyone who is about his age to go for medical check-ups in order to avoid incidents similar to what he had experienced.

“I want everyone around my age to go for a check-up, even if you think nothing is wrong,” advised Long.

This incident goes to show that learning CPR is very important because you may just end up saving a life like the abovementioned boys. So, go and sign up for a CPR class now. 

To the five boys: Salute, cadets! 

Also read: How a S’porean Grad Gave Up His Corporate Dreams Because of a Glue-sniffer in Thailand