Man survives two heart attacks in 12 days with help of friends, family, emergency officials
Basalt resident Michael Latousek considered himself a lucky man — then December hit and left no doubt.
Latousek, 53, survived not one but two heart attacks just 12 days apart. He did it with a little help from his friends, his daughters and first responders.
Many of the people who played critical roles by acting fast and providing aid gathered Feb. 12 at an awards ceremony organized by Roaring Fork Fire Rescue.
It was fortunate that the gathering was a celebration of Michael’s life rather than a memorial service, said Fire Chief Scott Thompson.
“You’re a lucky man,” the chief said to Latousek.
Latousek said he thinks of that all the time.
“Not a second goes by that I don’t think of every one of you. Being here is a dream. It was a nightmare, and now I’m the luckiest man alive.”
Latousek’s first brush with death came Dec. 9, when he met Tony Thompson of Basalt and another friend from Grand Junction for a mountain bike ride in Fruita. He completed the first climb of the day when he started feeling chest pain.
“I had no idea what it was. I started feeling a cramp right in between my lungs, right smack dab middle of my chest,” Latousek recounted.
After resuming riding, he told Thompson and the other rider to go ahead because he was still feeling out of sorts.
Thompson, acting on a hunch that something was wrong, looked back and didn’t see Latousek. He found his buddy collapsed on the trail, his left shoe still clipped into the pedal.
Thompson traveled a short distance to where he picked up cell service and called 911.
Rescuers came with a helicopter because of the inaccessibility of the terrain. But while waiting for them the incident became even stranger.
“While I’m sitting there, I look over to my right and about 20 or 30 feet from me, someone had carved into a rock RIP,” Latousek said. “I’m like, ‘Tony, come here for a minute. I’m totally doomed.’ He’s like, ‘Stop it. Don’t look at that.’ ”
About one hour and 15 minutes after his collapse, he was being examined by a cardiologist and, soon after, in surgery. He had two stints installed.
The cardiologist told him a buildup of plaque was clogging a couple of arteries, a common affliction known as the widow maker. The fall on his bike might have jarred the blockage free and potentially saved his life, according to his doctor. Then it happened again Latousek returned home after three days at St. Mary’s. The second cardiac event on Dec. 21 was even more harrowing.
Michael was home with his two daughters, Lauren, 13, and Taylor, 11, while his wife, Denise, was out of their home taking care of some business. Michael collapsed in the kitchen.
Lauren started CPR, having been trained and certified when taking a babysitting class. Taylor called 911. Lauren had the composure to keep performing CPR for a few minutes until Lt. Aaron Munch and officer Evan Wagstrom of Basalt Police Department arrived.
Richard Cornelius a division chief with Roaring Fork Fire Rescue, said the two police officers performed CPR for close to nine minutes and used their AED defibrillator to apply three shocks before they detected a pulse.
Latousek said his doctor determined the second cardiac event was triggered by inflammation from the first event.