Heroic gardaí save woman's life
Chantel O’Connor: 'It was extremely scary'
“SOMEONE’S life is in your hands and it’s nerve-wracking,” said Student Garda Matthew Forrest who, along with his colleague Garda Tommy O’Loughlin, helped to save the life of a young woman over the bank holiday weekend.
The two were on patrol in Carlow town in the early hours of Monday morning when they were alerted to the presence of the woman, lying on the ground in Haddens car park. They found 24-year-old Chantel O’Connor breathing but unresponsive.
“We were on patrol and the nightclubs were emptying out when a member of the public flagged us down. It turned out to be Chantel’s father. She was unresponsive and in the recovery position, but she took a turn and stopped breathing,” the student garda, who is currently on placement at the Carlow barracks, told . An ambulance had been called and staff instructed Matthew to begin CPR while Garda O’Loughlin went to retrieve a defibrillator.
“I went for the defib, but it couldn’t find a pulse, so we were doing CPR. Matt is only out of college so his training would be fresher than mine. It didn’t really click with me what we were doing – it’s just a normal day for me,” said Garda O’Loughlin.
The pair continued to perform CPR for nearly ten minutes until the paramedics arrived. Student Garda Forrest said first-aid training “can’t compare” with its use in an emergency.
“It was the only thing to be done; I just got on with it. It takes a lot out of you physically, especially for a prolonged period, and it’s hard to believe but I had the song running through my head, and it does actually work,” he said.
Chantel had begun breathing by the time the ambulance arrived, but remained in critical condition. Paramedics stabilised her and she was brought to St Luke’s Hospital in Kilkenny.
Speaking to from her home in Carlow town on Tuesday evening, Chantel said: “I don’t recall much of the night as I was in and out of consciousness. I only know what people have told me.” She wished to thank the two gardaí for their assistance.
“I just want to thank them for all their work and to let them know how much I appreciate them for being there. I’d also like to thank my family for being by my side the whole time and for getting help to me so quick. I’ve never had an asthma attack before and, from the parts I do recall, it was extremely scary to go through,” she said.
Superintendent Anthony Farrell praised his team members for their quick, selfless thinking in helping in a serious medical episode.
“I am delighted our frontline uniform service were there and could help. Their intervention and efforts made a real difference when paramedics in the ambulance service arrived,” he told .
Garda O’Loughlin went on to stress the importance of defibrillators: “If there wasn’t defibs scattered around the town, it could be a different story; to have access to them, especially for us in the middle of the night, it’s so important,” he said.
Meanwhile, Student Garda Forrest, who is from outside Castledermot, said he is enjoying his training.
“I am loving it – it’s a great job. I did law in college, but I wanted to be active, I wanted to be of benefit to the community,” he said.
