Craney Island 'miracle' contractor counts his blessings

Posted March 11, 2010
By Jerry Rogers, Norfolk District Public Affairs

03/11/2010 - NORFOLK, Va. — Pipe foreman Dennis Smith has a lot to be thankful for -- a loving family, good friends, a steady and decent job and good health. "I am also thankful for Carlos Quinones," added Smith.

Smith is referring to Quinones' quick reaction and life-saving techniques Feb. 8, after he suddenly passed out while working on a spillway project at the Craney Island Dredged Material Management Area, in Portsmouth, Va.

After calling 9-1-1, the site contract superintendent called the Craney Island project office to report the incident.

Quinones, a civil engineering technician with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, was working in the project office at Craney Island, when a call came in that someone had collapsed. Quinones quickly responded, using training techniques the Corps put in place as part of its comprehensive health and safety program.

The Norfolk District had installed Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) in the district headquarters and at all district project field offices. Employees at each site were trained as authorized AED responders.

The AED is a portable electronic device that diagnoses potentially life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, or an irregular heartbeat. It treats patients through defibrillation – the application of electricity to stop the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to reestablish an effective rhythm.

Quinones immediately grabbed the AED mounted on the project office wall and drove to the scene to see if he could assist. "When I arrived, I saw Smith lying on the ground and someone performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR," said Quinones.

Quinones approached Smith and noticed that he was barely breathing. "I instructed the man who was administering chest compressions to stop. He was Smith's stepson," Quinones added.

After continuing to administer CPR, Quinones observed that Smith's breathing was getting increasingly erratic, and after about two minutes, he stopped breathing.

Quinones checked for a pulse and when there was none, he had Smiths' stepson help place the AED pads on Smith's bare chest. Once the pads were in place, the AED scanned Smith's body and audibly instructed Quinones to clear the area around the patient and administer shock.

"I then checked for signs of breathing and a pulse. Smith slowly began breathing and within three to four minutes, regained consciousness," said Quinones.

For the remaining few minutes before the ambulance arrived, Quinones kept talking to Smith to keep him conscious. Once the ambulance arrived the emergency medical team took over.

Quinones, an eight-year Corps veteran who serves as a contracting officer representative and quality assurance inspector, revealed that while this incident was his first use of the AED, it is a simple device requiring the user to follow very basic directions.

After Smith's successful recovery, Quinones asserts that he did nothing extraordinary; he was just doing what he was trained to do.

A few days leading up to Smith's medical emergency, he said he was suffering from flu-like symptoms.

"It was right before the Super Bowl. I couldn't eat or drink much…a fever had me pretty much whacked out," explained Smith.

The Monday after the Super Bowl (Feb. 8), Smith said the fever had broken enough so he returned to work.

"The doctors who treated me after I passed out at Craney Island said my body was practically depleted of electrolytes and potassium, which probably caused my irregular heartbeat," he said. "Also, my longtime family nurse practitioner, who has administered the AED to patients hundreds of times, said my recovery was nothing short of a miracle…the timing and early use of the AED had to be precise," Smith added.

As a teachable moment for everyone working at Craney Island, Quinones said he will use this incident to inspire, motivate and continue the everyday goal of making Craney Island a safe working environment for all. In fact, Quinones said the emergency notification procedures have already been changed to include the complete street address to the Craney Island facility.

Smith is back on the job and back to his jovial self. He met with Quinones last week, thanking him for saving his life and keeping him "above ground."