Four U.S. soldiers were eating at a rest area in Poland on Thursday when they saw a civilian man collapse outside of a KFC.
The soldiers — 2nd Lt. Indiana Rhodes, Sgt. 1st Class Alicia Haggins, Staff Sgt. Jacob Roberts and Sgt. Justin Fagan — rushed to the fallen man.
Haggins communicated with the man’s family about his medical condition by using her phone to translate. Meanwhile, Fagan checked the man’s vital signs and began CPR.
“His pulse was really faint,” Fagan said in an Army release. “He didn’t respond to a sternum rub so I started chest compressions.”
Fagan, Rhodes and Roberts continued chest compressions for nearly 30 minutes until EMS arrived and airlifted the man to a nearby hospital, according to U.S. Army Garrison Poland.
“Their quick thinking, teamwork and lifesaving response are a testament to the professionalism and heart of our Soldiers,” U.S. Army Garrison Poland wrote in a social media post.
The day following the incident, the recently deployed soldiers — all with the 214th Military Police Company, Alabama Army National Guard — were hopeful the man they helped was doing well and recovering. There was no public update about his condition as of Tuesday.
“I just hope it all turns out good for him and his family,” Haggins said in the release. “I am glad that we were there and had the training and expertise to react.”
Todd South has written about crime, courts, government and the military for multiple publications since 2004 and was named a 2014 Pulitzer finalist for a co-written project on witness intimidation. Todd is a Marine veteran of the Iraq War.
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