Coast Guard crewmember helps save woman by performing CPR

DATE: September 14, 2009 2:16:07 PM PDT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

		Eleventh Coast Guard District
NEWS RELEASE	DATE: CONTACT:	Sept. 14, 2009 Petty Officer Levi Read (510) 772-8865
Coast Guard crewmember helps save woman by performing CPR
SAN FRANCISCO - A crewmember from Coast Guard Station Monterey helped save a woman Sunday morning by performing CPR when she was found not breathing and had no heart beat. Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew Garrison, a boatswain's mate at Station Monterey, was working on the boat dock at Station Monterey when he noticed and heard commotion on San Carlos Beach. A pedestrian notified Garrison of the situation, which he relayed to Station Monterey's communication center where emergency medical services were called. Garrison grabbed a first-aid kit from the station's 47-foot Motor Lifeboat and ran to the beach. Once on scene, Garrison found a 39-year-old female scuba diver unconscious on the beach. The diver had been pulled out of the water by fellow divers who had already commenced CPR. Garrison assumed CPR efforts and within a minute, the patient regained consciousness. Shortly after the woman regained consciousness, the local EMS arrived on scene and transported the woman to Community Hospital of Monterey Peninsula. Hospital personnel listed the patient in stable condition. All Coast Guard boat crewmembers are routinely trained in first aid and CPR. ###