HUDSON, NY -- At the November meeting of the Columbia County EMS Advisory Board, local law enforcement officials were recognized for their life saving response to two recent incidents in Columbia County.

Columbia County Deputy Sheriffs Scott Leggett and Todd Hyson were recognized for their response to a cardiac arrest at the Ghent Town Hall on the evening of September 17, 2009.  Leggett, a Resident Deputy assigned to the Town of Ghent, was at the town meeting to discuss ATV law and enforcement when a member of the audience suddenly collapsed to the floor in cardiac arrest.  Deputy Leggett immediately notified 911 and retrieved an automated external defibrillator, or “AED”, from his patrol car.  As Leggett applied the AED to the victim’s chest, Deputy Sheriff Hyson arrived to assist him with CPR.  The two deputies worked together to restore a heart beat and provide supportive care until paramedics arrived.

New York State Troopers Brennan Keeler and Eric Buchinsky were also recognized for their response to a choking call on the afternoon of October 21, 2009 in the Town of Livingston.  Columbia County 911 dispatched paramedics to a report of a child choking in a vehicle along the side of the road.  The child had apparently become entangled in a seatbelt that was now wrapped tightly around his throat.  Hearing the call, Troopers Keeler and Buchinsky responded from the Livingston State Police Barracks.  When they arrived, they found the child in extreme distress with the seatbelt wound so tightly they had to cut it with a knife to free him. 

“In both of these cases, the patients are alive today because of the quick response of some alert police officers”, said EMS Coordinator PJ Keeler.  “Without the care they rendered, we may have had very different outcomes”.