NYPD officers save man's life after going into cardiac arrest on 60th wedding anniversary
MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS, Manhattan (WABC) -- On Saturday there was nothing but praise and gratitude for six officers from Midtown North. They saved a man's life after he went into cardiac arrest.
"These officers saved my father's life, it's nothing short of a miracle," says Chrstine Yoken.
The man did not have a pulse, and his chest rose.
"Instantly I remembered what they taught us at the Academy and started chest compressions and CPR," said Officer Robert Pepe.
Just before 8 p.m. Friday night, Ron Gargalowitz, 83, his wife and their entire family were on West 45th Street to celebrate the couple's 60th wedding anniversary, when Gargalowitz collapsed.
Good Samaritans flagged down a passing patrol car and the officers raced into action.
While Officer Pepe performed CPR, his partner called for an ambulance and a defibrillator.
By the time the ambulance arrived, the officers already got the man's heart to start beating again and he was breathing on his own. Eyewitness News is told he was awake while being rushed to the hospital.
This was teamwork at its best.
"Took a little from every person to put whole thing together. Without everyone standing here, wouldn't have happened," said Officer Michael Gallagher.
"They not only saved my father, they saved our whole family. I can't thank them enough," added Yoken.
On Saturday, the officers visited a smiling Gargalowitz in the hospital and gave him a gift to remind him he has guardian angels in Midtown North.
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