On the evening of Monday, December 18, Communications Specialist Lucas Santos of Flagler County Sheriff’s Office received a call from a resident who stated her husband had stopped breathing and was turning blue after complaining of chest pains.
Santos immediately began to talk the woman through CPR instructions while fire rescue was dispatched. With his guidance, she performed multiple rounds of CPR perfectly, and after EMTs arrived, the patient was transported to the hospital.
“One of the hardest parts of our jobs is that many times after a call like this, we never know how the call ends,” said Christina Mortimer, Director of 9-1-1 Communications Center. “We will provide the pre-arrivals and we dispatch the responding units, but it’s not common we get an update on the outcome of the patient.”
Earlier this month however, a man named Dan and his wife Carol visited the 9-1-1 Communications Center hoping to meet the Communications Specialist that saved Dan’s life. Unfortunately, Santos was not working that day, but Dan and Carol expressed their gratitude to all of the dispatchers and reminded them that they are the invisible heroes and the first responders callers come in contact with.
Dan then placed a cut-out heart with Communication’s Specialist Santos’s name on the Communications Tree of Life. This tree serves as a reminder in the 9-1-1 Communications Center of all the lives saved by FCSO dispatchers. In addition to this heartwarming gesture, Santos was nominated for FCSO’s Life Saving Award.
“Communications Specialist Lucas Santos’ quick response and calming voice helped save this man’s life,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “We have an amazing team of dispatchers serving in our 9-1-1 Communications Center, that are incredibly dedicated professionals that truly save lives. I’m proud to recognize Lucas Santos as another standout member of our team.”
The 911 call is below:
