By Laura French
SAN FRANCISCO — Police are crediting an EMT trainee with helping save the life of a man who was overdosing at a San Francisco train station.
City College of San Francisco EMT Student Nicholas Stallcup was waiting for a friend at the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Civic Center Station when he found a man lying unresponsive at the bottom of a staircase, according to a BART news release.
Stallcup said the man was blue in the face, had his eyes rolled back, was barely breathing and had a weakened pulse. The student lay the man flat and began to perform CPR until the man’s breathing and pulse were restored.
“He was unresponsive for what felt like 15 minutes when it was only three minutes,” Stallcup said. “I thought he was dead.”
Three BART police officers arrived and administered two doses of Narcan before the man was transported to the hospital for treatment.
BART Officer Abraham Pena-Vega said Stallcup’s early intervention made a difference in saving the man’s life.
Stallcup said he had just finished his third week of training at the City College, and stressed the value of CPR classes for both responders and civilians. He also stressed the importance of showing compassion for others.
“It’s easy to look at someone and think — oh, he’s a junkie so let’s not bother — and turn the other cheek,” Stallcup said. “They are still part of our community. They are not the most glamorous or healthiest part, but nonetheless, they are one of us.”