Crew, EMTs combined to save life in sailing emergency

I recently joined the Sandpoint Sailing Association with my wife (my motivator) as a volunteer to assist with weekend races, spend more time on the water and get reacquainted with a childhood love of sailing.

A recent Saturday was our first day of officiating the season opening race. It started out very sedate, almost not enough wind for a race. But this is a gung-ho group of people. The race was on. About 10 minutes into the race a distress call came out from one of the boats.

The skipper (Al) was unconscious. No breathing. No pulse. His crew immediately began CPR. A nearby sailboat came alongside, allowing a couple additional crew to jump on the boat to assist. Calls went out to 911.

Al’s crew immediately acted to drop the sails and get the boat under motor back to the dock as fast as possible. Sandpoint Fire Department EMTs were waiting for them on the dock to take over. It looked grim.

However, Al is recovering in Coeur d’Alene — alert, and with his family. Al’s crew saved his life. The Sandpoint EMTs saved his life.

Thanks to clear heads, training, teamwork, and a lot of courage we still have Al. Thank you, Al's crew. Thank you, Sandpoint Fire Department EMTs.

(For information on sailing on Pend Oreille, go online to sandpointsailing.org.)

KASS LARSON

Sagle