When Longview resident Keith Karns suddenly collapsed from cardiac arrest in December, his wife performed CPR for five minutes, ultimately saving his life.
At a Longview City Council meeting Thursday, Fire Chief Phil Jurmu honored Carol Karns, along with emergency responders, for their actions as part of the “chain of survival.”
“In the earlier part of my career, we did CPR not knowing for sure if we were going to have a positive result, and most often we didn’t. But today it’s different,” Jurmu told the council. “(And) it all begins with bystander CPR.”
Carol Karns said she became hysterical after her husband collapsed suddenly during a quiet night at home on Dec. 17. His heart stopped, and Keith Karns immediately started turning blue. The Karns learned later that only 10 percent of people survive the kind of heart attack he had.