Lara man George Lucas is back playing lawn bowls after going into cardiac arrest on the green six months ago.
Mr Lucas, 80, had no symptoms prior to the day and would have likely died but for the swift response of other players on the scene and the automatic external defibrillator (AED) at the Lara Bowling Club.
“I just felt a little bit funny across the chest; not a real tightness, just a sense that something was off,” Mr Lucas said.
“Then I started feeling a bit sweaty, but I dismissed it as adrenaline from focusing on my game. Then my jaw started to ache, and 10 minutes later I collapsed on the green.
“I feel incredibly lucky. If I had been home alone that day, I wouldn’t be here. The quick response of my mates, the AED and the paramedics saved my life.”
Fellow players Karen Dick, Michael Fedyk, Don Grellet and Elke Van Baar quickly called Triple Zero and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), which, along with two shocks from the AED, kept Mr Lucas alive until emergency services arrived.
Ambulance Victoria paramedic Alex Ikin, who attended the scene, said the outcome would have been very different if it weren’t for the fast response from the bystanders.
“Time counts in a cardiac arrest, for every minute CPR is delayed, the chances of survival decrease by 10 per cent,” he said.
“Everyone involved in helping George did such a fantastic job that he was conscious by the time we arrived.
“It really shows the lifesaving difference you can make by doing three simple steps; call, push, shock.”
Visit ambulance.vic.gov.au/translated-resources for resources on CPR in multiple languages.
