EMTs save a choking woman’s life in a Rehovot Restaurant

Rehovot – Tuesday evening, just after 8:00 p.m. a woman in her 70s was enjoying a meal in a restaurant on Herzl Street in Rehovot when she suddenly choked on a piece of meat that she was eating and proceeded to lose consciousness. The service staff from the restaurant quickly called emergency services for help and began performing CPR on the woman while receiving guided instructions from the dispatcher.

United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yisrael Peretz was riding his ambucylce on his way to an advanced motorcycle training session when he received the alert about the emergency taking place near his location. He quickly flicked on his lights and sirens and rushed over to the restaurant and arrived in less than 90 seconds. He grabbed his medical equipment and ran inside.

“As I entered the restaurant I saw the wait staff performing CPR on the woman. I checked her pulse and she had a faint one which faded quickly. I continued the CPR attaching a defibrillator and performing compressions. I was alone for about two minutes until two other volunteers, Chagai Menelovitz and Dovid Chetzroni rushed in.”

The three EMTs continued compressions while providing assisted ventilation and attempting to remove the blockage. Seven minutes after Peretz arrived an ambulance arrived and joined the effort of the EMTs to save the woman’s life.

A few minutes later, the woman’s pulse came back and she began breathing on her own once again. The blockage had been cleared. 15 minutes after Peretz began CPR the woman was in stable enough condition to transport her to the hospital for further care.

“This is what we train for,” Peretz reflected after the incident. “These moments where we can help people and save a life, that is what our entire organization is about. We live and breathe these moments when we are successful and carry them with us so that we don’t get disheartened when we are unsuccessful. It becomes part of us and defines us as who we are. When an emergency occurs, we are the ones who show up to help and that is something special that I want to be a part of. I am happy to spend my time this way, saving lives and helping people whenever they are in need of assistance.”

Peretz concluded by emphasizing the importance of a fast response, in cases of choking and CPR. “When dealing with life-threatening situations such as CPR and choking incidents, every second is crucial. Those extra 7 minutes the woman would have had to wait for the ambulance to arrive could have been the difference between life and death for her. I am so thankful that I was able to respond as quickly as I did and that we were able to help her. May she lives many more joy-filled years.”