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Utah Life Saving Athletic Trainers Honored

Article reposted from Good 4 Utah
Author: RICK AARON

http://www.good4utah.com/news/local-news/life-saving-heroes-honored-in-layton

Leigh Otis and Amanda Jennings don’t consider themselves heroes but everybody else does, including Layton city officials.

Their quick actions on April 27th are the reason that 17-year-old Connor Moss is still here today.

Moss collapsed during a weightlifting session at Northridge High School that afternoon and his heart stopped.

Otis, the Athletic Trainer at Northridge and Jennings, a Weber State University trainer, found him on the floor unconscious and without a pulse.

Otis began performing CPR while Jennings ran downstairs to grab an automatic external defibrillator. They were able to use it to shock him back to life and today he is good as new and was at Layton City Hall to see the women get awards.

“I was ready,” Jennings said, remembering that day. “I was happy that I was able to do what I was supposed to do and it’s not necessarily that I feel like a hero I’m just glad I was able to step up and I knew what to do.”

Moss often sees Otis at Northridge High but had not met Jennings until the ceremony Thursday night.

“I can just say thank you a million times but it still wouldn’t be enough,” Moss told ABC4 Utah News.  “They’re very humble people and they’re not in it for the glory or awards but they do deserve them.”

A group of Layton City firefighters attended the ceremony and gave Otis and Jennings a standing ovation for their efforts.

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Utah Athletic Trainer Saves a Life

Two women are being praised as heroes for their quick action in saving the life of a 17-year-old Northridge High School student whose heart suddenly stopped beating at the school Wednesday afternoon.

Connor Moss, 17, was working out as part of Northridge High’s fitness program when he went into a hallway to cool off around 3:30 p.m. Within a few short moments, Moss lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground, according to Layton police.

Leigh Otis, a Northridge High athletic trainer who teaches EMS at the school, said she and another woman, a student athletic trainer from Weber State University, performed CPR on Moss and used a portable defibrillator to revive him.

“We had a lot of students who were very shaken up” by the incident, Otis said. “I’m probably still in a little bit of shock. … It’s what we’re trained to do, so I’m just glad I was there.”

Otis added that Moss was “stable and … responding to the doctors, so he is doing very well.”

Suzanne Moss, Connor’s mother, said her son would be evaluated Wednesday evening by doctors at Primary Children’s Hospital. She said she was filled with gratitude for those who rescued her son.

“The doctor … verified they did in fact save his life. His heart had stopped. And if they hadn’t been there with the equipment and knowledge they had, they said he probably would have died,” Suzanne Moss said. “I just want to thank (the women) for what they did for my son. They saved his life.”

Suzanne Moss said Connor remembers nothing about what happened.

Layton Police Sgt. Clint Bobrowski said it isn’t clear what caused Connor Moss to collapse. He said the teen was conscious, breathing and alert by the time emergency responders arrived at the scene.

Bobrowski and Layton Fire Department spokesman Doug Bitton both praised the women’s preparedness Wednesday.

“The Davis School District and local school administrators have acted upon the recommendations of our department to place (defibrillators) within this school,” Bitton said in a statement. “The heroic efforts of a well-trained staff and a good maintenance program in keeping the batteries ready to go in this (defibrillator) clearly made a difference here today.”

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