By Mark Hand
The News & Advance
LYNCHBURG, Va. — A Lynchburg man who suffered a heart attack last month visited Fire Station 7 on Wednesday to shake the hands of the firefighters and medics who saved his life.
Shayne South, who had returned from a Caribbean cruise only a day earlier, started feeling pain in his chest and asked his daughter to call 911 on March 15.
LEGAL ISSUES: No gray area: The EMT photo that could end a career — and spark massive liability
Within three minutes, an ambulance and a firetruck from the fire station on Lakeside Drive arrived at his house, and the medics started working on him.
While the medics were assessing his condition, South lost consciousness. Medics used a defibrillator to restart his heart, and when he was stabilized, they took him to Lynchburg General Hospital.
From the time of their arrival at his house, it took the Lynchburg Fire Department medics only 50 minutes to assess his condition, bring him back to life and take him to the cardiac catheterization laboratory at the hospital, where a stent successfully opened a heart artery that had been 100% blocked.
If the medics had shown up five minutes later, the chances of South’s survival would have greatly diminished, doctors told South. He had suffered a “widow-maker” heart attack, according to the doctors, because the 100% blockage was in the largest artery.
South, who showed up at Fire Station 7 with several pizzas as a token of his gratitude, described the station’s personnel as possessing the “hands of God” that saved his life.
Alex Brown, a firefighter/EMT; Tony Peeler, a paramedic; Les Powell, a firefighter/paramedic; and Captain Casey Kilgore were the LFD personnel who showed up at South’s house on March 15. All four were at the fire station on Wednesday afternoon to meet with South.
Peeler said the station had received a 911 call about a person having chest pains. When they arrived at South’s house, they realized he was having a heart attack, he told the news media.
Powell said they quickly notified Lynchburg General Hospital about getting the cardiac catheterization laboratory ready for a patient. The sooner the blockage is removed, the greater the chance of long-term survival, he said.
Doctors told South the other main coronary artery was only 50% blocked, which is considered “moderate,” and did not need immediate stenting. Upon his release from the hospital on March 18 , South said he was instructed to change his diet to more heart-friendly foods.
South said he is back to his normal routine, including climbing stairs and other types of exercise. He also has returned to work at Automated Conveyor Systems Inc. , a manufacturing company where he has worked for 38 years.
South said he plans to purchase four flags to honor the LFD personnel who saved his life as part of the annual Field of Honor, which honors first responders and military veterans. In September, the flags are placed in the field next to Automated Conveyor Systems’ facility near Graves Mill Road.
While he had chest pains, South emphasized he didn’t feel any other pain at a moment when he may not have survived if the medics hadn’t arrived.
South said he started feeling chest pains on his Caribbean cruise to Cozumel, Mexico, and other destinations. The medics on the cruise ship attributed the pain and his vomiting to a bacterial infection.
If the heart attack had occurred on the cruise ship, they may not have had the resources to save his life, he said.
South said he’s generally not a lucky person and attributed the fact that he had the heart attack in Lynchburg, where medics could care for him, to God’s intervention.
The medics said it makes their years of training worthwhile to see someone who recovers and comes back to thank them for their service.
“He looks great. He looks really good,” Peeler said. “We’re thrilled to see it.”
© 2026 The News & Advance, Lynchburg, Va.
Visit www.newsadvance.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.