Shortly before noon on September 27th, 2007, a meeting had just ended at the Baker Project, which is about two and a half hours northeast of Seattle, Washington.  Several attendees noticed that upper Baker River hydro operator Mike Kempkes looked unwell and then he suddenly slumped over the table.  This prompted his colleagues to swing into action.

PSE employees Bob Coffell, Doug Koens, and Lynn Bell, along with contractor Dan Phalen, quickly lowered Mike to the floor, assessed his airway, and found that he was not breathing.  Doug called 911, Bob ran to get the AED.  Meanwhile Lynn and Dan did two cycles of CPR.  Bob attached the AED, which advised a shock.  The first shock revived the patient, and he remained stable.  Twenty minutes later the ambulance arrived and transported Mike to Skagit Valley Hospital.

Mike and his wife, Bobby, live on-site at the Baker Project and in the midst of the commotion Bobby looked out her kitchen window to locate her husband.  Not seeing him, she rushed outside, approached Bob Coffell and said, “It’s Mike, isn’t it?”  He said yes, but quickly assured her that Mike had already been revived.

Less than two hours later, Mike was resting comfortably at the hospital, visiting with his wife and daughters.  He expressed surprise that he had been the one shocked, as he himself is an EMT in the Baker area.

Mike Kempkes, Bob Coffell, Doug Koens and the rest of the PSE crew get the MEDIC FIRST AID training every year.  PSE’s Energy Resource Group has been providing annual training at the remote Baker Project instead of every two years, and it really paid off.

A mere six days after the incident, Mike was able to attend a staff meeting in which his rescuers were honored.  Mike was fortunate that there was an AED at the site, which one of his rescuers, Bob Coffell, had urged the company to purchase.  That, and the annual MEDIC FIRST AID training these employees receive, truly helped make the difference between tragedy and triumph for Mike, his family, and Puget Sound Energy.