They were just doing their job is what they’d tell you, but seven Massachusetts-based firefighters traveling on a Southwest Airlines rallied to revive a fellow passenger who was having a medical emergency. The inspiring story occurred on a recent Boston Logan to Midway flight.
How fortunate do you have to be to have seven firefighters, four of whom are medics, onboard when you experience a medical emergency? Pretty fortunate. Such was the case for one passenger who, according to reports, fell ill approximately 45 minutes after his flight left Boston Logan Airport on its way to Chicago’s Midway airport.
His luck? To have seven firefighters sitting near him. Indeed, a team of North Attleborough-based firefighters, including Fire Chief Chris Coleman, spring into action after observing a fellow passenger appearing to be suffering from a seizure.
The crew, who was on their way to Colorado Springs to pay their respects to the Fallen Firefighter Memorial, lept in action moving the man to the center of the aisle. After determining the man had no pulse they began to perform CPR, ultimately reviving the passenger.
Apparently, the Southwest Airlines flight had a medical IV onboard which was administered by one of the firefighters thus allowing the flight to continue on to its final destination.
In a phone interview with the Sun Chronicle, Chief Coleman noted, “By the luck of the draw there were seven firefighters on board and four who are medics. It was a true team effort.”
The Fallen Firefighter Memorial honors firefighters who’ve perished in the line of duty and the team, which included a few retired firefighters, planned to pay their respects at the memorial in honor of two of their comrades: Captain Jack White and firefighter Chris Cornetta.
The team of firefighters from the North Attleborough department included:
- Chief Chris Coleman
- Capt. George McKinnon
- Capt. Josh Langille
- Lt. Scott Langille
- Jeff Badger (ret)
- Rich McDonagh (ret)
- Cory Shepardson
You can support the Fallen Firefighters Memorial through donations here.
