OLYMPIA – An Edmonds woman suffered a heart attack at the entrance to the governor’s mansion on Wednesday, and the quick response of two rookie State Patrol troopers and a Good Samaritan may have saved her life.
The woman, who is in her 70s, was part of a group from Edmonds United Methodist Church that arrived shortly before 1 p.m. for a tour.
Mansion security Sgt. John-Paul Sager said the woman collapsed as she reached the security post. She had no pulse and was not breathing when trooper Derek Anderson began administering CPR with help from a passer-by who is a nurse in Vancouver, Wash.
A second trooper, Mathew Andersen, arrived with an automatic defibrillation device. The woman was taken by ambulance to Providence-St. Peter Hospital. Sager said he was told two hours later that she was OK.
Hospital officials said federal law prevented them from releasing the name and the condition of the woman. Church officials could not be reached for comment.
Sager said the incident did not affect activities in the mansion. Gov. Christine Gregoire was not inside at the time.
Sager praised the two troopers, who have each been on the job for about six months.
“They did a fine job. They made us proud,” he said.
Jerry Cornfield, reporter, political columnist: 360-352-8623 or 425-387-5167 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com.
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