Imagine this: It’s a day like any other and you are enjoying an afternoon with a loved one. Out of the blue, you hear a frantic scream and find your loved one not breathing and unresponsive. You are alone, and you need to act fast. Would you know what to do?
A now recovered 17-year-old Jordan Angelini (left) with her mother Adrianne Copeland.
On March 14, 2008, Jordan Angelini and her mom, Adrianne Copeland, were at McQueens Barn in Surrey taking care of their horse Shorty. While Jordan was outside in the paddock lunging Shorty, Adrianne was cleaning the stall. Adrianne was just entering the barn when she heard a horrific scream from approximately 400 to 500 ft. away. As she ran to investigate, she found Jordan knocked down sideways into a puddle. Jordan was gurgling as Adrianne helped her down onto the ground and laid her on her back.
Finding Jordan still faintly breathing, Adrianne immediately ran to the house but found no one to help. By the time she returned, Jordan had just stopped breathing. Adrianne then grabbed the phone from the barn and was calling 9-1-1 as she sprinted back to Jordan.
Remembering what she had learned before, Adrianne immediately started Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) on Jordan with the 2-breaths and 15-chest compressions until the dispatcher informed her that the new procedure has changed to 2-breaths and 30-chest compressions. She followed the dispatcher’s instructions, including tilting Jordan’s head so that air went into her lungs instead of her stomach.
It took about six minutes from the initial 911 call for help to arrive. Adrianne continued to work on Jordan until emergency responders arrived on scene and began administering the Automated External Defibrillator (AED) it worked without a hitch.
On September 12, 2008, Adrianne Copeland received the Red Cross Rescuer Award for saving her daughter's life.
Jordan arrived at the hospital an hour after the incident. Her injuries included partially cracked ribs, partially collapsed lungs, and cardiac arrest. Her spleen was also somehow affected. Jordan woke up 2 days later in the hospital with stable recovery weeks later. She does not remember the incident and the family never was able to figure out how it all happened.
Today, Jordan is a healthy 17-year-old teenager with the only sign of the incident being a scar on her left arm that no one knows where it came from. She would not be alive today without Adrianne’s previous knowledge and training in CPR and the dispatch assistance of the dispatcher on the phone. The experience has led Adrianne to pursue a career in emergency response. She has recently completed her Occupational First Aid Level 3.
