ALIVE THANKS TO HERO NEXT DOOR Neighbour’s CPR mercy dash saves heart attack victim
A TOWNSVILLE man who had a heart attack has his quick- thinking neighbour to thank for saving his life.
Darren James, 44, collapsed on the floor of his home gym after going into cardiac arrest on Monday night, and was discovered by his wife and daughter.
Mr James’ daughter Taylah, 16, rushed next door to neighbour James O’Connor to get help while his wife Tina called 000.
Mr O’Connor raced to Mr James’ aid and performed CPR for 15 minutes before paramedics arrived. Mr James’ wife Tina said she wanted to recognise the bravery of her “amazing” neighbour for saving her husband’s life.
“James kept him going just enough for the ambulances to come in; without that, he would have been gone,” Mrs James said.
“Without James I don’t think Darren would have made it. He is the hero of this, and the ambulance as well, they’ve done an amazing job.”
Due in no small part to the heroic efforts of Mr O’Connor, who was too humble to speak to the Bulletin, Mr James is doing well and was walking around his hospital room yesterday. He is preparing for surgery to have an in- ternal today.
“I’m really good actually, a bit sore from the compressions, but James did a sensational job,” Mr James said.
“It’s really all about what James did for us. Fifteen minutes he was working on me, which is a hell of a long time. defibrillator fitt fitted d
“We know James pretty well. They’re good neighbours, they’re great people and it’s g great that he was home.”
Mr James said he did not remember anything about the incident after screaming for help. He had collapsed after just five minutes of exercise.
“It’s a really sudden thing, I was doing some really minor exercises,” Mr James said.
“They say that with cardiac arrest there’s about a 5 per cent chance of getting through. We put it down to what James has done.
“I’m just very fortunate everyone was around.”
Mrs James said daughter Taylah was still shocked after finding her father collapsed.
“She’s still struggling a bit. She’s seen a lot but her dad is still sitting here, which is great,” she said. “When you see your husband lying there like that, it’s next level.
“We raced over and found him in a really bad condition, blue and in his last moments.”
Even after the exhausting ordeal, the family is full of gratitude for everyone who helped save Mr James’ life.
“How do you thank someone for that? That’s what I’ve been struggling with, I need James recognised,” Mrs James said. “You just can’t thank someone enough. The ambulances that came, they’ve been fantastic too, they’ve even come up a couple of times to check on him.”
Mr James hopes to be discharged from hospital by early next week.