People / Spotlight on achievers
After San Clemente resident John Fedele helped save the life of 59-year-old Carmen Rumps, he had a lot of “thank you” cards to read --not just from Rumps and her husband, but all 17 of their children.
Fedele, a firefighter for Los Angeles County, was shopping at the Price Club in Capistrano Beach last summer when he saw Rumps collapse. He administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation until paramedics could arrive.
Fedele was honored recently with a commendation from the Orange County Fire Authority, presented at a Laguna Niguel fire station.
“If you don’t do CPR within four to six minutes, the brain begins to die,” said Capt. John Lamb of the Fire Authority, who was on the first fire engine at the scene.
Fedele’s quick action “bought [Rumps] the time she needed to live the quality life she’s living now,” Lamb said.
Lamb said Rumps, who had suffered a heart attack, regained consciousness in the ambulance and began talking about her husband and 17 children.
“She told me how much she was looking forward to seeing a new grandchild who had just been born,” Lamb said.
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