Amherst Bee
ERIE COUNTY, N.Y. — Harold Haffa, an assistant chief with the Williamsville Fire Department, will receive an award on April 6 from the Erie County Fire Chiefs Mutual Aid Organization in recognition of lifesaving medical aid he provided to a Cheektowaga woman in January.
He was leaving the parking lot of Basil Ford on Walden Avenue on the morning of Jan. 23 when he came upon the scene of a one-car accident.
Haffa, who works as a driver for Alside Building Supply in Cheektowaga, was dropping off a company truck for service at Basil Ford when he saw that a car had driven up on the grass across the street and struck a sign pole.
“We saw the tires were still spinning, and there was a lot of smoke,” Haffa said.
The 15-year firefighter ran over to the car and checked on the driver, identified by Cheektowaga police as Alice Zagara. The woman was unresponsive and had a slight pulse.
Haffa ran back to his assistant chief’s truck, grabbed his bag and defibrillator and sprinted back to the car. This time, he couldn’t find a pulse.
He removed the woman from the car, placed her on the sidewalk and began CPR.
He continued for about a minute and a half until responders from Rural/Metro Ambulance Service and the Rescue Fire Company arrived. Together, they loaded the driver onto a backboard and placed her in the back of the ambulance.
“He probably saved her life, since he was right there to begin CPR immediately,” said Rescue Fire Chief Richard Chojnacki.
According to Chojnacki and Cheektowaga Police Capt. James Speyer, the woman was believed to have suffered a heart attack while driving and veered off the road. Haffa said he did not consider himself a hero when The Bee spoke with him about the rescue in January.
“This is something I have been doing for a long time,” he said. “It’s fortunate that I’m trained to help people. If I can save someone, it makes all those years of training worthwhile.”
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