B.C. man honoured for saving friend's life using CPR
Alaster Osborne was honoured at his Squamish, B.C., woodshop Monday with an award for helping to save his friend and business partner's life using CPR.
The Squamish Finishing Solutions co-owner was presented with a Vital Link Award, which B.C. Emergency Health Services uses to recognize "significant contributions" made by everyday citizens during medical emergencies.
In December 2019, Osborne was booking a flight to England for the holidays when his business partner, Marc Dandurand, suddenly suffered an electric shock.
Durand had been crafting wooden Christmas gifts using a new and risky wood-burning technique involving parts from an old microwave.
"As soon as I touched it with both hands, I connected the circuit. It sent me flying back 10 feet," he said. "And this is where Al found me."
Osborne came running down and immediately performed CPR while waiting for ambulance to show up.
"He realized his phone was upstairs so he had to stop, prop the door open, scream for help, but nobody was around. (So he) ran upstairs, got his cellphone and then called 911," Dandurand said.
"I was obviously scared. I feel like my natural instincts kicked in," Osborne said.
BJ Chute, unit chief of the Squamish ambulance station, said Osborne's actions could well have saved his business partner's life.
"He performed heroic measures on a friend, and that's not easy," he said. "Without Alaster's quick-thinking, heroic efforts ... I think we would be having a very different service here."
The link provided by bystanders providing CPR until paramedics arrive is "critical in the chances of that person surviving," he added.
While first responders did resuscitate Dandurand, he still spent a week in a coma in hospital.
His family didn’t know if he would pull through and even considered taking him off life support, but he miraculously woke up and was discharged before the end of December.
Dandurand says he now looks at life through a different lens.
"Just enjoy every minute that you have, every day. Don't take anything for granted. I know it sounds all cheesy, but it's true," he said.
As for Osborne, he takes his award graciously and humbly.
"I'm not a hero. I would do this again in any situation that is required. I feel like it's our obligation as people in society to support other people and help other people," he said.
He and Dandurand spent the next several weeks after the incident making a wooden table which they plan to auction off and donate the money to a charity on behalf of the first responders.
"To me, it's a small way of giving back using our skills that we work with everyday," said Osborne.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What is whooping cough and should Canadians be concerned as Europe declares outbreak?
There is currently a whooping cough epidemic in Europe, with 10 times as many cases compared to the previous two years. While an outbreak has not been declared nationwide in Canada, whooping cough is regularly detected in the country.
Ontario Provincial Police arrest 64 suspects in child sexual exploitation investigation
Ontario Provincial Police say 64 suspects are facing a combined 348 charges in connection with a series of child sexual exploitation investigations that spanned the province.
'Summer of discontent': Federal unions vow to fight new 3-day a week office mandate
Federal unions are launching legal challenges and encouraging public sector workers to file "tens of thousands" of grievances over the new mandate requiring federal workers to return to the office at least three days a week in the fall.
Watch fighter jet pilots pummel fake enemy ship off coast of Philippines
The United States and Philippines held annual joint-training drills just off the Southeast Asian nation’s western coast on Wednesday. Military forces sunk a 'mock' enemy warship – the BRP Lake Caliraya, which was a decommissioned tanker made in China.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his head more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
'Ozempic babies': Reports of surprise pregnancies raise new questions about weight loss drugs
Numerous women have shared stories of 'Ozempic babies' on social media. But the joy some experience in discovering pregnancies may come with anxiety about the unknowns.
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs to start for Canucks in Game 1 vs. Oilers
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs will start in net for the Canucks as Vancouver kicks off a second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers Wednesday night.
OPINION What King Charles' schedule being too 'full' to accommodate son suggests
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
TSB concludes investigation into cause of London, Ont. freight train fire
More than two weeks after a freight train with several railcars ablaze rolled through the heart of the Forest City, the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) has concluded its investigation.