A North Texas man likely would not be alive if it weren't for a quick-thinking son-in-law who started CPR just in the nick of time.
Patrick and Jessica Butler recently moved into a new home in Melissa. They were upgrading the backyard patio with the help of Jessica’s father, Mike Solomon.
On the afternoon of July 26, Solomon was drilling a hole at the top of a 10-foot ladder when he suffered cardiac arrest and fell off.
“I was just freaked out. I didn't know what was going on,” Patrick Butler said.
A home security camera recorded Butler scrambling to help.
“His face was turning blue, his lips were turning blue so I could tell at that point that he wasn't breathing,” he said.
Within seconds of dialing 911, Patrick, who said he has no experience doing CPR, was transferred to Collin County's ambulance service, American Medical Response, for guidance under the gun.
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"I'll tell you how to do chest compressions. We're going to have to do CPR, OK?" the AMR operator said.
With his phone to his ear, and his father-in-law laying lifeless on the countertop, Patrick began chest compressions.
“1, 2, 3, 4. Keep doing compressions over and over, don't give up! This will keep him going until paramedics arrive,” the AMR operator said.
Paramedics with the Melissa Fire Department arrived and rushed Solomon to the trauma unit at Medical City McKinney.
Solomon’s wife Cindy and daughter Jessica said doctors had no doubt Patrick saved Solomon's life.
“Patrick gave me back my husband. We will have been married 46 years next month,” Cindy Solomon said.
“Everything that could have gone right for Mike that day, went right,” Jessica Butler said. “You can call it whatever you want but it's a miracle that that man is still alive.”
After weeks in the hospital, Solomon is now in rehab and has reunited with Patrick, an emotional meeting recorded inside a hospital room.
The Butlers also stopped by the Melissa Fire Department to thank the crews that helped save Jessica's father’s life, saying in a Facebook post, “Hoping next time all of them are there and Pops can thank them himself!”
