On Friday March 7, 2014, the day began as ordinary for Huntingtown VFD member, Tyler Latvala. Unbeknownst to him, this was all about to change with him being credited for miraculously saving the life of a stranger due to being at the right place at the right time. Shortly before 7 am, Tyler was on the school bus while the driver was making the daily runs picking up other students before heading to Huntingtown High School.
While traveling through Claggett Road, Tyler noticed a person lying face down in the snow with a dog sitting close by. Tyler notified the driver who immediately stopped the bus. Tyler and 3 other students jumped off of the bus to check on the welfare of the patient. Tyler assessed the patient and found he was not breathing and didn't have a pulse. He asked the students to call 911 while he began CPR.
At 0658 hours, the Huntingtown VFD & Medic Unit was alerted to the address for the cardiac arrest with CPR in progress. The members of the Huntingtown VFD arrived on location and found Tyler performing CPR on the patient. Additional members joined in assisting with the efforts as well as quickly removing the patient from the frigid ground & snow and moving him into the back of the heated ambulance. Just minutes after being moved in the back of the ambulance, the patient began breathing again and before arriving at Calvert Memorial Hospital, was conscious and talking.
The 28 year old male advised that around 3 am, he took his dog outside to the bathroom and that's the last thing he remembered. He had been lying face down in the snow for approximately 4 hours before being found. He was treated at Calvert Memorial Hospital for hypothermia and to determine what caused him to go into cardiac arrest. Later that evening, he invited Tyler over to his residence to shake his hand and thank him for saving his life.
