As a nurse, Kathy Friedrich performs CPR on many patients.
But when the police come, she doesn’t really get to see the full outcome of each response.
Friedrich became “a true witness of their outcome” on March 28 when she became unconscious while driving. Her vehicle struck a telephone pole on Greentree Road in front of All American Assisted Living.
Township police officers Dante Moore, Ben Swan, Rob McNair and Matt Tucker arrived on scene within a minute. It was Moore’s first day patrolling on his own.
“It was their immediate response that has given me a second chance of life,” Friedrich said. “And I am so thankful for them, and they will forever be my new family friends.”
The officers earned official Life Saving proclamations for their heroic efforts at a May 6 council meeting.
At the scene, they quickly forced entry into the locked car by smashing out the glass windows. They safely removed Friedrich, but she was not breathing and had no pulse. The officers immediately began CPR and deployed an AED (Automated External Defibrillator), continuing for about seven minutes.
“They worked together seamlessly,” noted Police Chief Patrick Gurcsik, “performing lifesaving measures under extremely stressful conditions.”
The officers restored Friedrich’s pulse as the township fire department and EMS arrived and continued care before transporting her to Jefferson Hospital. She was later transferred to Cooper Hospital.
Gurcsik was impressed by his officers after watching the body-camera footage, shared on the department’s social media page. He noted the leadership and direction of Swan, a senior officer on scene.
During the council meeting, Gurcsik read a message he received from Andy Lovell, chief of Gloucester County EMS.
“I noted with interest the outstanding service your officers recently provided to the motorist who experienced a cardiac arrest while driving,” Lovell wrote. “Successful resuscitation of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is regrettably uncommon, meaning it doesn’t happen often.
“Successful resuscitation with a complete neurological recovery is even more elusive,” he added. “As a 20-year paramedic here in New Jersey, please pass on my sincere appreciation to your officers that resuscitated the motorist.
“Their actions clearly pushed the bar high for all fellow first responders.”
Mayor Anthony DellaPia was honored to be part of the proclamation ceremony.
“The thing I always admire about our first responders is they get up in the morning, they go to work not knowing what they’re going to face that day or whether they are going to make it home,” he said.
Councilman Johnson “Jack” Yerkes, III added it’s a proud moment for emergency services.
“Being part of an emergency service in the form of police and fire that I’ve been for several years,” he observed, “I can appreciate the training experience and the leadership that comes along with this profession.”
Friedrich and her family went to police headquarters on April 15 to meet and thank the responding officers who gave her a second chance at life. There were hugs, handshakes and a catered lunch from Chick-fil-A.
“It was their immediate response that has given me a second chance of life, and I am so thankful for them and they will forever be my new family friends,” Kathy Friedrich (holding flowers) said of the four police officers who rescued her after she became unconscious while driving on March 28. The officers – Dante Moore, Ben Swan, Rob McNair and Matt Tucker – arrived on scene within a minute and saved her life.
Kathy Friedrich with two of the officers who came to her rescue, Matt Tucker and Dante Moore.
