Synchronized Teamwork Revives Passenger

News & Happenings

February 2, 2007

When passenger Peter Caro collapsed at an Orlando International Airport security checkpoint earlier this month, a chain of well-executed human reactions resulted in a life saved.

Witnessing the incident, airport employee Robert Cognet called 911. A federal air marshal (FAM) who was working covertly at the checkpoint, began doing chest compressions after first checking the man’s vital signs. A nearby passenger volunteered to begin mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Transportation Security Officer Katherine Leich, meanwhile, asked other TSA employees if they knew CPR and TSO Tim Fitzgerald ran to assist the FAM. An airport police officer arrived with an automatic external defibrillator (AED). The FAM applied the AED and Caro’s heart began beating again.

With Caro still not breathing easily, Fitzgerald continued to do mouth-to-mouth until paramedics arrived and transported him to the hospital.

"When I heard him speak and I knew he was alive, I realized that all our rescue efforts worked perfectly," said Fitzgerald, who learned CPR as a Florida national guardsman before joining TSA.

"These three TSA employees should be recognized for their actions that went beyond the call of duty," said Supervisory TSO Frances Gifford. The special agent in charge of the FAMS Orlando Field Office echoed the sentiment, expressing pride in the way the FAM responded.

Caro was recently released from the hospital and headed back to his home in Pennsylvania.