When his heart stopped, an expert team sprang into action.

Dave Ogle just wanted to get unpacked after coming home from a six-hour drive in July 2019. But his wife, Kris Patrow, convinced the 55-year-old from Woodbury to relax and sit with her a while to unwind. “This was our first miracle,” said Patrow.

She was right. Though they didn’t know it at the time, the retired photojournalist was moments away from cardiac arrest. As his wife sat next to him on the couch, Ogle gasped and became unresponsive. Patrow, who was CPR-certified, immediately called 911 and performed CPR on her husband for nearly nine and half minutes before the EMTs arrived.

Paramedics had to shock Ogle’s heart seven times before it restarted. “I’m stunned,” Dave said, “It makes me realize how dire the situation was.”

During the days and moments leading up to Dave’s cardiac arrest, there were no warning signs or symptoms that would have been cause for alarm. Cardiac arrest occurs when the electrical activity that regulates your heartbeat “short circuits” and fails. This is not to be confused with a heart attack, which occurs when one of the blood vessels supplying the heart muscle becomes blocked—often by plaque buildup. A severe arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, can often cause the heart to stop beating, leading to cardiac arrest.

Cardiac arrest typically happens without warning and is always a medical emergency. Fast action is needed to save the person’s life, which is exactly what happened for Dave Ogle.