IBEW 1245 members Michael Musgrove (left) and Clint Grich
PG&E Construction Operator Michael Musgrove and Working Foreman Clint Grich were driving south on Highway 5 when they decided to pull over at a truck stop near Manteca. They were just about to get back on the road when they noticed a man lying unconscious on the ground. It was clear that he needed help, so the two raced over to the scene to see if they could assist.
When they arrived, a female bystander was already on the phone with 9-1-1, and another gentleman was kneeling down next to the unconscious man, trying to talk to him. The 9-1-1 dispatcher asked if anyone was able to perform CPR, at which point Musgrove and the other man began performing chest compressions, while Grich went in search of an AED (defibrillator).
“We happened to have just had our CPR refresher class two weeks prior, so it was fresh in our minds,” said Musgrove, a ten-year IBEW member. “We knew exactly what to do.”
As Musgrove and the other man started to perform chest compressions, a crowd began to gather around them. Some of the bystanders urged Musgrove to perform mouth-to-mouth, but he didn’t have anything to put over the man’s mouth, and he remembered his CPR instructor telling the class to avoid mouth-to-mouth if there’s no protective mouth covering available. So the two men continued with the chest compressions in sets of 100; one would count as the other performed compressions, and then they would switch.
“Everything was going really fast at first, but in the moment, it felt like we were moving in slow motion,” Musgrove recalled. “It was pretty intense.”
Grich captured this photo on his phone as the first responders prepared to transport the man to the hospital.
They continued with the compressions for approximately 30 minutes, until help finally arrived. The Fire Department showed up first, and took over CPR using an AED. When the EMTs arrived a few minutes later, they quickly loaded the unconscious man into the ambulance and took off.
The following day, Musgrove made some calls in an effort to find out how the man was doing. He wasn’t able to get much information, but he did learn that the man still had a pulse when he arrived at the hospital, and the fire chief thanked him and told him that he did a good job.
Musgrove never expected to have to use his CPR training that evening, but he feels fortunate to have been in the right place at the right time.
“I always pay really close attention during the CPR class when we take it every year, because I have little ones at home,” said Musgrove. “You hope that you never have to use it, but when there’s an emergency like this, you’re happy to have that training. I’m just glad we were able to help.”
–Rebecca Band, IBEW 1245 Communications Director