AMU Emergency Management Public Safety

DC EMT Heart Attack Victim Meets Her Rescuers

By David E. Hubler
Contributor, EDM Digest

A Washington, D.C., emergency medical technician who suffered a heart attack while driving was recently reunited with 13 of her EMT colleagues and others who saved her life, WUSA Channel 9 reported.

Angelia Boddie, a 20-year veteran of the D.C. Fire and EMS Department, met on April 25 with the first responders and the medical student who treated her. During a news conference at The George Washington University Hospital, D.C. Fire and EMS Chief Gregory M. Dean recognized each person who helped save Boddie’s life.

Boddie suffered the heart attack on Tuesday, March 28, while driving on Pennsylvania Avenue just before the evening rush hour. When she went into cardiac arrest, Boddie’s car rear-ended the vehicle in front of her. She said that she has no memories of what she felt or what happened just before the accident. .

“To hear that a crowd of people circled my car, in the middle of traffic, and started giving me CPR, is incredible,” Boddie told WUSA. “These were folks I didn’t know, who just jumped in.”

Two medical students, a Boy Scout troop leader and 13 first responders on their way to another call surrounded her car in the middle of the street.

Brandon Glousman, 25, was one of the medical students who helped Boddie by administering chest compressions.

“I was on my way to get a haircut, riding my bike, when I saw a crowd gathered around the cars,” Glousman told WUSA. “I ran into the middle of the street, and I saw her inside, thinking immediately, ‘We need to check her pulse.’”

Glousman, who is studying to be a cardiologist, was joined at the scene by a second med student.

Boddie said the incident reaffirmed her life’s purpose, and in turn, solidified her faith in God and her faith in others.

“I know that God put the right people in place that day,” Boddie said outside The George Washington University Hospital. “It was like they were waiting to do the will of God when they saved me.”

About the Author

David E. Hubler brings a variety of government, journalism and teaching experience to his position as a Quality Assurance Editor at APUS. David’s professional background includes serving as a senior editor at CIA and the Voice of America. He has also been a managing editor for several business-to-business and business-to-government publishing companies. David has taught high school English in Connecticut and at Northern Virginia Community College. He has a master’s degree for Teachers of English from the University of New Hampshire and a B.A. in English from New York University. David’s 2015 book, “The Nats and the Grays, How Baseball in the Nation’s Capital Survived WWII and Changed the Game Forever,” was recently published in paperback by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Glynn Cosker is a Managing Editor at AMU Edge. In addition to his background in journalism, corporate writing, web and content development, Glynn served as Vice Consul in the Consular Section of the British Embassy located in Washington, D.C. Glynn is located in New England.

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