Fast Thinking Fred Meyer's Employees Save Local Man's Life
Pictured: The four Freddy’s Employees who were involved in saving a man’s life stand for a photo. Left to Right, Randall Carr, Shelly Fisk, Jacyln LaMar, and Amy Crichton-Tunai.
The quick thinking of several The Dalles Fred Meyers employees has saved the life of a local man who suffered a medical emergency at Fred Meyer.
On February 18th, 2021, Fred Meyer Associates Jaclyn LaMar, Randall Carr, Shelly Fisk, and Human Resources Manager Amy Crichton-Tunai started their day off much like any other.
Little did they know that today, they would be working together as a team to save a local man’s life.
Around 4 PM all that changed.
At about 4:01 PM the man fell.
A customer saw him fall and got help. Amy Crichton-Tunai arrived at 4:02 and Jacyln LaMar and other associates were only moments behind her. They began chest compressions at around 4:03 - less than two minutes after the man fell. A fast response time to emergency medical situations such as this is an important factor in preventing brain damage related to lack of oxygen.
“I heard an overhead page that I always listen for but dread hearing,” said Jacyln LaMar. “This was a coded page for emergency medical assistance. We use this code at Fred Meyer to help alert first aid trained associates of the issue without drawing a crowd that can make things more hectic or difficult in an emergency.”
The page specified only that assistance was needed in the food parking lot. LaMar was behind the registers near the ATM against the front wall of the store, so she quickly hurried out into the food entrance. She looked around and saw a small group of people standing on the east side of the entrance near the first accessible parking spaces. Human Resources Manager, Amy Crichton-Tunai, was standing on the sidewalk. In front of her was an older gentleman laying unresponsive on the icy pavement in the parking lot. A female customer was next to him with a phone to her ear talking to the emergency dispatch.
“I glanced at the two of them and one more customer a bit further away and tried to remember what Amy had told me during our first aid training some time back,” said LaMar. “Step one: Assess the situation. I asked, “Has anyone begun chest compressions?” The man looked unnaturally still and my gut reaction was that he was not breathing. He looked the way my grandfather had looked in his casket at his funeral.“I was so scared that the man had passed or wasn’t going to make it.”
“It was horrible to see someone like that and not know if there was anything that could be done to help but I knew someone had to start CPR right away in order to give him at least a chance. No one had begun first aid so I knelt in the snow next to him. I tapped him with the palm of my hand on the chest and loudly asked “Sir, can you hear me?/? Sir?”
Having verified that he was in fact unresponsive and not breathing LaMar began performing chest compressions. Placing her hand in the center of his chest and pressing down 5 to 6cm (2-2.5 inches) at a steady rate of 100-120 compressions a minute. Crichton-Tunai counted the cycles aloud for everyone involved to stay on track while also getting the AED prepped for use.
“I had to double-check with Amy that my hands were positioned correctly since it had been a little bit since we had practiced. This only took a matter of moments. Other store associates began to arrive, also responding to the emergency page. One associate had brought our emergency medical bag and while I continued to perform chest compressions they opened it up pulling out the defibrillator and a breathing pump. I focused on chest compressions and Amy let me know I needed to go a little faster. I remembered reading that the beat of “Staying Alive” by the Beegees is the right tempo for CPR so I tried to sing that song in my head. It was not amusing to me as I was fearing for the worst. I had to look up and out across the parking lot, trying to focus on the task that needed to be performed and not think about the reality of the situation,” said LaMar.
In CPR training they’d learned that after every 30 chest compressions, two rescue breaths are administered. Following the procedure, LaMar then stopped chest compressions while Carr used it to pump air into the man’s lungs and Crichton-Tunai held the AMBU bag to get a good seal for the breaths. The man started gurgling and making sounds.
“I asked if he could hear me and checked his pulse. He seemed to be getting some air but was still non-responsive so I began chest compressions again,” said LaMar. “I was not keeping count, I wasn’t sure if I was going fast enough, and I was so scared I was doing everything wrong but I knew the only thing we could do to even try to help this man was to continue CPR until the paramedics arrived. “Stayin alive, stayin alive” was a very grim mantra in my head for such a peppy song.”
“I looked at this kindly-looking grey-haired man with his head in the ice and my heart ached,” said LaMar. “I had been in such a hurry to help that I didn’t put on the nitrile gloves from the first aid bag. I didn’t want to waste the precious seconds that would’ve taken in responding to the situation.”
At that point LaMar touched the back of the man’s head and felt that he had a head wound, when she pulled her hand away she realized she now had his blood on her bare fingers. The Assistant Store Manager Shelly Fisk saw this from where she was standing and immediately stepped forward.
“When it was time for more chest compressions she took over so I could run and wash my hands with soap and hot water,” said LaMar.
At this point, the ambulance pulled into the parking lot. In total Carr, Fisk, and LaMar had performed CPR for over 5 minutes before the paramedics arrived in an ambulance.
“I hurried to wash my hands thoroughly with very hot water for two full alphabet songs and then went back to the food parking lot to see what else I could do to help,” said LaMar.
When she returned, the paramedics were already loading him onto a stretcher.
“I saw a hat underneath the fender of the next car over near where he had been laying and realized it must’ve been his. It said “US Veteran,” said LaMar. “Someone told me to place it between his legs on the stretcher.”
“After he was loaded in the ambulance they stayed in the parking lot for what seemed like a really long time before racing off with their lights and sirens going,” said LaMar. “The store management team began writing down as much information about the incident as possible and safely cleaning the blood off the pavement.”
This is pretty standard for how Fred Meyer handles these situations.
Pictured Left to Right, Randall Carr, Shelly Fisk, Jacyln LaMar, and Amy Crichton-Tunai.
The 5,000-6,000 people that enter Fred Meyer everyday will be glad to hear that there are always multiple Fred Meyer associates on duty that have First Aid training at any given time.
“We fill out incident reports and file a lot of paperwork for OSHA reporting and insurance reasons. I have worked there for 10 years now and responded to a lot of different medical emergencies, we see a lot of seizures and falls mostly,” said LaMar. “but this was my first time performing CPR.”
“In training, we practiced on dummies and we laughed and joked around a lot. I remembered a lot of what to do from muscle memory and I was really glad Amy had made us do it several times - even though I felt like I understood after the first time. During an actual emergency, I didn’t trust my memory and I wish I had practiced even more,” said LaMar. “When I got home that night I had “Stayin Alive” on repeat in my head for a really long time. I don’t think I’ll ever hear that song the same way again.”
While it may have been LaMar’s first time administering CPR, Carr and Fisk had both administered CPR in other emergency situations before.
“I was in the service for 20 years, so from the day I got in until the day I got out we had annual training every year,” said Carr, “That’s my second time doing CPR,” said Carr, “The first time didn’t have a good outcome. This time I’m very grateful that we had a good outcome.”
“It’s really important that people learn CPR, just simple chest compressions can save someone’s life,” said Fisk. “I just think everybody should know basic CPR.”
The injured man is now in recovery.
That night someone informed the store that the customer still had a pulse when he arrived at the hospital and that he was being transferred to Portland.
“It was really lucky that someone saw him and we were able to get there so quickly and that the paramedics arrived so quickly as well,” said LaMar.
“I do not know this man but several of my coworkers do, we’re not allowed to share his name because of HIPAA.” said LaMar. “He was responsive on and off and he got to see his loved ones. They know what’s going on and they can prepare - hopefully for his full recovery. We’re all hoping and praying he makes it through.”
LaMar and associates are going to be recognized for their life-saving actions.
“Ever since this happened people keep coming up to me asking me about it or telling me they heard I’m a hero. I even got an email from our district manager Kevin Gee. At first, it just felt so unreal. It felt like a completely unbelievable thing like there’s no way this happens to real people. I was so uncomfortable with the praise and questions. I just didn’t want to think about it anymore,” said LaMar. “Then I realized that was probably my brain trying to distance me from that trauma. This was real. It was scary. It happens all the time and it could happen to anyone. I am so grateful I received CPR training and I am so glad I was in the right place at the right time to help that man.”
“I just hope he makes it through and that everyone takes time to thank and support our first responders who deal with these situations every day. If I thought one time was traumatic how must they feel? They honestly don’t get enough recognition. They were the ones who had the training and know-how to get that man through this past week,” said LaMar.
Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue Division Chief Fred Coleman called the actions taken by the employees “above and beyond the call of duty…to help save a life of a fellow citizen.”
Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue has extended an invitation to LaMar, Carr, Fisk, and Crichton-Tunai to their next board meeting scheduled for March 15th, 2021 at 5:30 PM to receive an award of recognition for their life-saving deeds. The recognition ceremony will be available for viewing online for friends and family who want to participate virtually.
Want to know how the story ends?
Read More: Man Meets The Fred Meyer’s First Responders That Saved His Life
