Heart attack survivor meets good Samaritan who saved his life
NEW YORK (WABC) -- A 63-year-old heart attack survivor got to meet the good Samaritan who saved his life.
The meeting happened at Huntington Hospital in Suffolk County on Thursday.
Peter Skura, a retired electrician, suffered a heart attack while driving on Daly Road in Commack back in September.
"I just stopped breathing and literally died in the car seat," Peter Skura said.
"We were just going on Daly Road and his hand just slipped off the wheel," Peter's wife Janice Skura said. "I went to elbow him, like cut it out. I looked at him. His eyes were back in his head and bubbled coming out of his mouth."
She was in the passenger seat and had to jump over the center console, grab the wheel and put her foot on the break.
"I open the driver's side door and I was just screaming 'someone, anyone please help me,'" she said.
That's when Kevin Klis, a custodian from East Northport, came to the rescue.
Klis, who lives just six houses away from where the Skuras pulled over, rushed out and performed CPR, helping save Peter Skura's life.
"I heard Janice scream out for help," Klis said. "That's when I noticed Peter was back with his mouth open. We got him out, we got him on the ground. And I just started doing CPR."
Klis said he remembered a CPR class he took in high school.
"Upon arrival, he was found in the street, basically on the yellow line," John Mancino said. "CPR was in progress, pads were applied. His rhythm was ventricular defibrillation. That's a rhythm that is not compatible with life. He was dead."
"I didn't know you could just die," Janice Skura said. "He never gasped, or held his chest, nothing. He just died."
It took only three months to recover, as Peter Skura fought against the odds of only a 10% chance of being discharged after a cardiac arrest.
"The initial CPR is probably the most paramount importance because brain death occurs within four minutes of no circulation," said Raj Patcha, cardiologist at Huntington Hospital.
"It was like sent from god, that two angels came and just started, took action to start compressions. It was a miracle," Janice Skura said.
Now, almost three months to the day after this harrowing experience, the Skuras were reunited with the good Samaritan, as well as the paramedics and Huntington Hospital doctors who performed additional life-saving measures.
"Just trying to wrap my head around it. It's like -- wow, I got this chance, I need to embrace it and really try to do something with the time," Peter Skura said.
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