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Heroes jump into action to save man at the Oceanfront

Posted at 6:28 PM, Sep 02, 2014
and last updated 2014-09-03 08:41:03-04

Virginia Beach, Va. - A 65-year old man went into cardiac arrest on the boardwalk in Virginia Beach.

He didn’t have a pulse. It could've been the end of his life, but two nurses and an EMT happened to be nearby.

They jumped in and started doing CPR until emergency responders could get there.

"I could tell by the way he fell he wasn't just like drunk or something like that. He was in distress," says Thomas Fielder, a nurse.

"I turned around and heard all the commotion, and I saw a man down with his wife in panic,” says Derek Fuller, an EMT.

It happened Friday on 6th Street and the boardwalk. The man went down and that's when the three took action to save his life.

By the time the man left the area in the ambulance, he was awake and talking.

"I just couldn't believe it was happening. It feels good to do something like that,” says Fielder.

In the days since it happened, Virginia Beach Police tracked the three down, using Facebook to ask for help in identifying them to commend them for saving the man's life.

The three say they were just following their training.

“It's good to know that we were able to help someone in their time of need as well as getting the message out that anyone can help someone if you're willing to and CPR does save lives,” says Fuller.

It’s a skill they say we all should learn.

Virginia Beach Police didn't have an update on how the man is doing, but say they'd like him to meet the three people who helped to save his life.