A group of civilians were honoured by Windsor Fire and Rescue Friday for their outstanding acts of heroism in emergencies they faced first hand.
A fire or medical emergency is often unexpected. Five people proved that lives can be saved by taking the proper action.
Enrico DeChellis saved a man's life by performing CPR at a Windsor Subway restaurant on Oct. 13.
"It was kind of nervewracking,” says DeChellis. “Me and my girlfriend went for lunch. As we walked into subway the man on my left collapsed. I just recognized there was an issue here...he turned blue, we started performing CPR.”
DeChellis learned CPR at the age of eight during swimming lessons as a child, almost 30 years ago.
"We revived him, but then he relapsed. He stopped breathing. We had to do it again. It felt like an eternity."
DeChellis and his girlfriend returned to Subway the following day. They learned the man in his 40’s suffered a heart attack and he was going to be okay.
Deputy Fire Chief Brian McLaughlin says DeChellis and the other four people honoured had the ability to think quickly.
“They recognized it was an emergency situation,” says McLaughlin. “They used their good judgement and reacted to resolve the issue."
Fire officials say actions like these can make the difference between life and death.
DeChellis says he has never met the man he helped that October afternoon, but he is 'honoured' Windsor Fire took the time to recognize his efforts.
